A Mudblood's Slave?
by JessieBear22
Summary: Ch.20 The potion is nearly ready. Narcissa Malfoy is only a step away from being human again. What plot does Lucius Malfoy have to bring his wife home? What is he planning with his Death Eater Reunion? Please R&R!
1. The Capture of Draco Malfoy

**A/N: Hello to anyone who may read this. This is my newest fan fic posted at the moment. I was inspired to write this early this morning when I had nothing better to do. Leave me a review and tell me what you think! It would be much appreciated.**

**Disclaimer: All characters in the chapter belong to J.K Rowling. This is the only disclaimer I'll do and it should cover any future chapters I write. Plot is mine. :D**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

The fall of the Death Eater's had to be the most important event in wizard history. Even though the war was fierce and seemingly endless, a victory was won.

The death of Voldemort was the final occurrence that caused the fighting to stop. He was killed in his chambers while he made an attempt to stay out of the battle. There was nothing special about his demise. He died powerless and hopelessly alone at the hand of none other than the Boy Who Lived. He was layed to rest simply as Tom Riddle, long ago losing the name Lord and the respect it demanded.

He'd lost his followers, even though they still fought a losing battle. This was the final struggle for power over the muggleborns and half bloods. It was their hatred in the end that defeated them. And the small fact that they no longer had someone to lead them and guide them through the steps of evil deeds.

It seemed the Death Eaters expired right along with their Voldemort at the hand of an army of Aurors and Order members. And in the end, only a handful was left.

What would happen to the few Death Eaters that remained? Well, they would be punished. Sentenced to a life of serving those they once strived to conquer. I guess you could say they'd become slaves…

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

His chest heaved and his muscles cried out in protest, but he pushed himself further. He sprinted through the forest trying to avoid exposed roots that popped through the moist dirt. He held his wand between his teeth, for his hands were held behind his back by some sort of enchanted rope. He staggered and almost fell, but kept going, knowing they were not far behind him.

He'd disappeared when he saw that the Death Eaters were going to lose. He'd slinked off into the darkness and hadn't come out ever since. Except for now, he'd been in hiding for three straight months, not daring to come to the surface. He ate when he could, which wasn't very often, but he had plenty of water. He'd heard of what they were doing to remaining Death Eaters and he didn't want to spend his remaining years in Azkaban. That was a miserably pathetic way to spend the rest of your life. He was about to learn that he'd heard wrong. A very different fate was being delivered to remaining Death Eaters.

He'd picked the _wroooong_ profession.

His bare foot came down on something sharp that dug into his flesh. He cringed letting out a quiet yelp, but kept running even though the pain was plenty. He cursed when he realized his body was beginning to slow down, so he sped up trying to keep his former pace, finding it more difficult than ever. Especially with the pointy object embedded in his foot. He chanced a glance behind them, to see the Aurors weaving through the trees and gaining on him. His heart leapt into his throat, and that was when it happened. His uninjured foot snagged on an uplifted root and he tumbled forward, his face hitting the moist dirt hard. His eyesight went white for a moment, as the pain shot through his already swimming head. He lay there perfectly still, his eyes shut tight, willing the tinge to go away.

"We've got him!" someone yelled triumphantly, bringing their foot down hard on his lower back. They put all their weight down upon him to avoid him from wriggling away. He rolled his eyes, as if he could get away!

"Actually," came a strangely familiar voice. "The tree got him."

He was hauled to his feet roughly, and he got a glance at his wand lying askew on the forest floor, only a few feet away from where he'd been sprawled just a moment ago. He cursed himself, wiggling his wrists to see if the rope had loosened any. It only got tighter. When he finally did look up, he saw emerald green orbs glinting at him maliciously. He stared at the man in front of him, trying to shake many loose strands of dirty blonde hair out of his gray eyes.

"Draco Malfoy," Potter said in interest.

"Harry Potter," Draco replied, his eyebrows raised. "The Boy Who Fucking Lived."

Harry sneered taking in Malfoy's build, as he always did when they came face to face, ever since they attended school together.

Malfoy was broad in the shoulders, but he was lacking in muscle mass. It seemed he'd been sitting in that rat's whole for a long time. He was thin, looking as though he hadn't had a good meal for a few months. His hair was long, dirty and matted as it fell into his eyes and stuck out everywhere. The platinum blonde color had seemed to fade for he was covered in dirt. His facial hair had grown out into a shaggy beard and mustache, and his lips were pale and cracked. His clothes were filthy and torn, revealing his Death Eater mark on his right forearm. That tattoo meant nothing now. How could such a small symbol invoke so much fear? And his feet were bare, dirt packed under his toenails. For the first time in Harry's life, this was the only time he'd seen Malfoy so unclean… This was the first time Malfoy stank.

As shocking as all of that was, Harry couldn't bring himself to look away from his childhood nemesis' eyes. They no longer held any sort of the malicious humor they used to light up with when he crossed Potter's path. They were totally blank of all emotion, surrounded by dark circles. To Harry, Malfoy simply looked drawn and tired. The only thing that remained the same was that Malfoy stood proud and tall, his head held high.

Malfoy tried to rub at some of the dirt that was caked onto his pale cheek with his shoulder, but wasn't having much success.

"So we meet again," Potter said after a long silence. "We've worked so hard to find you. We spent months, and finally, here you are."

Malfoy merely looked on with mild distaste.

"You did all this for me?" he asked sarcastically. "Ah shucks. I'm touched boys."

Even his sarcasm lacked enthusiasm. Harry wondered what he expected from his enemy after so much time had gone by. Did he really think that Malfoy would drop down on his knees and beg for mercy? Draco was not the begging type.

"So what are you going to do with me?" Draco asked. Truthfully, none of it mattered anymore. Although, he really didn't believe Potter was man enough to kill him execution style and leave him to rot on the forest floor. But if death was what awaited Draco, then he was ready for him. Anything was better than sitting in that horrible place, waiting for the Aurors to come for him.

In Potter's opinion, death was too easy for Malfoy. He seemed to welcome the idea. Harry knew just what to do with Draco. He wanted to see Draco squirm.

"Let's go," he told his men. Draco watched as Harry began weaving through the trees.

"What about my wand?" Draco asked.

"You won't need one where you're going," said an Auror to the right of him.

"Pick it up anyway," Harry called. "Don't want to leave stuff like that lying around."

"Yes, because some poor defenseless muggle may come by and gouge their eye out with it," Draco snapped sardonically, as he watched the auror to the left of him pocket his wand. "Wouldn't want that would we?"

He was shoved hard from behind, and he fell to his knees.

"Quiet traitor," a familiar voice hissed in his ear, before he was jerked to his feet again. His legs wobbled slightly but he seemed to hold steady. In turn, Draco shut his mouth, knowing he wouldn't be able to steady himself again if someone should push him for a second time.

"Put this over his head," Harry called over his shoulder, throwing one of his men a burlap sack. "We're going into Diagon Alley. People will have a field day if they know who we've caught."

"So let them have a field day," came the familiar voice again. Draco chanced a look behind him and found himself looking at none other than the Weasel King. Ronald Weasley glared at him. That was the last thing Draco saw before the sack was put over his face.

"No," Harry said firmly. "They'll kill him before we even have a chance to get him to the slave stand."

Draco went cold inside. Slave stand?

"What!" Draco asked frantically.

"We're putting you up for sale so that you can repay your debts to those you've hurt," Potter replied. "You'll get to learn first hand what it's like to be a house elf."

Draco was silent, his mind searching for a way to escape again, although he knew his

efforts would be futile. They made it to the portkey and he was whipped out of his thoughts by the whirling and jerking that overtook him. When they landed, he found himself, yet again on his knees, pain swarming over his joints.

"Get up," Ron snapped, pulling him up again. Draco's knees buckled and he sank to the floor again. It took another auror to pull him to his feet again, and the men stopped, and waited for him to regain his footing. They moved into the busy streets of Diagon Alley.

"You've caught another Death Eater Potter?" came a woman's voice.

"Yes ma'am," Harry said with a smile.

"I hope you gave him hell, Harry!" came another call. Draco swallowed hard and was suddenly thank full that they'd hidden his identity. He had no idea that his wanted posters were all over the streets, in shop windows and on light poles.

They entered a shop.

"We've got another one for you," Harry said. "He is to be put on the stands just like the rest of them."

"How much he worth?" Draco heard the shopkeeper's hoarse voice ask.

"You decide," Harry replied unveiling Draco. The shopkeeper looked delighted.

"Oh, he'll bring in a pretty penny," the old man whispered, licking his lips greedily. Draco cringed, and took a step backwards, only to walk into a wand that was pointed at his back. "Leave him here," the old man replied.

And with that, Draco was left with the shopkeeper, to be put on the stands immediately.

A/N: Alright. This is my third posted fan fic. I hope anyone who may of read this enjoyed it. If so, leave me a review and tell me what you think. It's important, especially if you want me to keep working on this piece. :D


	2. Eight Thousand Galleons

**A/N: Wow! I can't even express how shocked and happy I was to get so many great reviews. Thanks to all of you and just for that, here you are! And I know the dark mark is supposed to go on the left arm, I was just writing so fast I didn't even think about that mistake:P I was so embarrassed. And keep in mind Harry hates Draco. Hatred brings out the worst in men and woman alike! I'm sorry if he seemed out of character because he's normally so noble:D Love to all! **

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

"Come on you!" said the old man, putting a collar around Draco's neck. He then pulled him through the back of the shop and into a narrow alleyway. A bidding was going on. Draco saw many fellow Death Eaters, standing with their hands bound behind them. They looked miserable and scared.

"Thousand galleons," yelled a man holding up a heavy bag.

"Do I get a higher bid for Vincent Crabbe?" the man at the pedestal cried.

Draco's eyes widened when he finally recognized his old school cronies. They were both thin and terribly pale. He felt something in him break. They'd lived through the war, but they hadn't been able to escape this? Just as he himself hadn't been able to escape.

"Two thousand galleons!" a woman cried in the crowd.

"Two thousand, can I get a higher bid?" the man asked. Nobody else in the crowd seemed to want to bid more than that. "Going once, going twice, SOLD to the lady in the red!"

The woman stood up victoriously and hurried forward to take Crabbe's leash. Draco shut his eyes and willed himself to walk further towards the stage.

"I'm about to be humiliated," he told himself reasonably. He held his head high and mounted the steps, with the old man behind him. A hush fell over the crowd.

"Draco Malfoy!" he presented Draco to the crowd. A lot of muttering was going on as Draco was forced to his knees yet again that day, next to Gregory Goyle.

" Ello mate," Goyle whispered, his voice quivering. Draco looked at him, his pale gray eyes alive with hatred for the audience.

"Hello Gregory," he whispered.

"You suppose this is the end of the line for us? We lose our freedom today," Goyle said, his voice cracking.

The _wroooong_ profession, Draco cursed himself.

"I don't know Greg," Draco said. He felt Goyle's hand grasp his wrist, and he moved his hand up as much as he could to comfort his long time friend.

The old man and the wizard at the pedestal began whispering to each other. The old man nodded and grasped Draco by his leash yet again. He was dragged to his feet, even though the old man looked weak and taken from the stage. The crowd let out a roar of protest as Draco was taken inside.

"What's going on?" Draco asked, as they descended down some steps.

"We're going to save you," the old man said hoarsely.

"What?" Draco asked.

"We think that we should advertise that you've been caught so that many, many wizards interested in a slave can come and check you out. We think we can get more money for you that way than to sell you today," he replied.

Draco looked puzzled at this.

"You're worth more than you think Mr. Malfoy," the old man said with a malicious smile. "I think many wizards would give quite a lot to get their hands on you."

With that he was shoved into a room with cold stone floors and the door was slammed behind him. Draco sat down, staring at the door and the little slot at the bottom. He sighed and rested his head on his arms, with his knees propped up against his chest. He didn't know what was to become of him, and he was quite scared about finding out. As his eyes adjusted he saw a blanket in the corner of the room and he crawled over to it. He picked it up and threw it around his shoulders, even though it smelled moldy, and propped his back against the right corner of the room. He had a feeling tomorrow wouldn't be any better.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wake up," someone said from above him. Draco squinted and found light flooding down the steps into his holding cell. It was the man who'd been selling the slaves the day before.

Draco furrowed his brow and made a noise of protest. The man nudged Draco in the shoulder with his boot.

"Come on," he said. When Draco only laid there unmoving, the man disappeared up the steps and came back with a bucket of water in his hands. He then proceeded to dump the water all over Draco and his moldy smelling, moth eaten blanket.

Draco sat up when that happened, panting and wiping his face. A lot of the dirt came off of him, revealing his pale skin.

The man then conjured a plate with his wand and set it in front of Draco. On the plate was some bread and a small container of butter. He then handed Draco a glass of water and left him to eat alone, once again in darkness. Draco looked down at the food and he picked up the piece of bread and the small container of butter. He then smeared the butter on the bread with his finger and stuffed more than half of it in his mouth. He chewed vigorously, took a drink of water and stuffed the rest of the bread in his mouth.

The door opened again, revealing the old man. Draco looked up at him, bread poking out from between his lips, the water still clutched in his hand.

"Get up," the older wizard said, scratching his chin. When Draco refused to obey, the man pulled his wand and whispered a charm that put the collar back around Draco's neck. He tugged on the leash hard, and Draco stood up, glaring at the older man.

"There's a young woman here," the man said. "Interested in purchasing a slave."

When he was brought into view, he saw that Goyle had not been bought the night before. He was slightly relieved to see a familiar face. The other Death Eaters he'd never really known. He went and stood by Goyle and took in the woman standing next to the counter. She had a black cloak on, and the hood was drawn over her eyes.

"Is this all of them?" she asked.

"Yes," the man said. The young woman paced in front of them, examining each and every one carefully, until she got to Draco. She looked up into his face, and he saw she had sunglasses on. She looked vaguely familiar.

"This one," she said pointing to him. Draco's heart sank.

"Why me?" he thought.

"Oh, are you sure miss? That one there's expensive," the old man said from behind the counter.

"How much?" the young woman asked.

"Eight thousand galleons," the older man replied. The woman reached into her robes and threw the old man a velvet sack. He weighed it and then counted out the money. Looking satisfied, he gave her Draco's leash.

"He's all yours," the old man said. She took hold of the leash but didn't yank Draco along side her.

"Let's go," she replied. Draco stood stubbornly looking down at the petite woman who stared up at her with her eyebrows raised.

"No," he snapped. He took a step backwards from her, looking around for possibilities of an escape.

"You can either come with me willingly or I can humiliate you in front of your buddies here," the woman said. She watched Draco patiently, and now there was something _very_ familiar about her. The way she poised herself, keeping her composure. Her face was emotionless, and he could bet that behind those sunglasses her eyes were calm. She reminded him of someone he once knew, but he couldn't quite place her.

Draco glared at her coldly but moved forward, already feeling the burn behind his cheeks.

"So long Draco," Goyle said sadly.

"So long Gregory," Draco muttered, wishing it was different. But somehow he didn't think he'd ever see Crabbe or Goyle ever again.

**A/N: Alright! Once again thanks to all for the great reviews. I will be updating soon! **


	3. Hermione's Project

**A/N: Thanks to the reviewer on chapter two:D**

**A Mudblood's Slave? **

A carriage was parked out side of the shop. There were these strange creatures standing in front of it, with bat like wings.

"After you," the young woman said. Draco shot her a nasty glare before he did what he was told. The wizarding law for slaves was back in effect. He was totally at her mercy. He sat down in one of the seats and she sat across from him. There was a book lying on the seat next to her and she picked it up and began to read.

"Who are you?" Draco asked. He didn't care that it sounded rude or pompous. He just wanted to know.

The woman made a small clicking noise with her tongue on the roof of her mouth. "Same old Malfoy," she replied, turning a page in the book.

"What does that mean?" Draco asked defensively. With that the woman removed her glasses, and let down her hood. Draco knew instantly when he saw her and a wave of nausea swept over him.

"Oh God, you're kidding right?" Draco gasped. Hermione Granger sat across from him, smiling. Her hair had tamed over in the past few years, and she'd grown up quite a bit but he'd never expect that he would have to serve her.

"Nope," she said, before returning to her book, appreciating the better lighting.

"What would you possibly want with me?" Draco asked, hoping he wasn't going to throw up all over the carriage floor.

"I think you can be a very hard worker. Therefore, I bought you seeing as you looked the healthiest," Hermione replied.

"What do you need a slave for?" Draco spat, forgetting that he indeed was her servant and being as disrespectful as ever.

"Well, you see," she began, putting the mark back in her book and setting it aside. "I've just bought a new house and it needs total remodeling. It's a fix-me-up home and I really could use some help," she said.

"Still! Why me Granger?" Draco cried dramatically.

"I've already told you why," she said. "Plus Harry told me they finally caught you, and that you were up for sale. They were planning on bidding you off tomorrow night, but I gave them eight thousand galleons, and a thousand more to ensure that you didn't get taken off by someone who would beat you and leave you for dead."

"Why do you even care mudblood?" Draco snapped confused.

"Don't you see Malfoy? Everyone deserves a second chance," Granger replied.

"Yeah well what about Crabbe and Goyle then?" Draco asked suddenly feeling very alone. "I don't know where Crabbe is. He was sold last night. And what's to become of Goyle?"

"They're still alive?" Hermione asked in interest.

"Yes didn't you see Goyle today?" Draco snarled.

Hermione thought for a moment and shook her head slowly. "I can't say that I did."

"He was standing right next to me!" Draco said. Hermione thought a little more and her deep brown eyes widened.

"That was Goyle?" she exclaimed. Draco nodded.

"He was so-" Hermione began.

"Skinny and frail looking?" Draco asked. She nodded in disbelief.

"Yup, that's what three months of starvation will do to you," Draco snapped.

For the rest of the time they were silent as they road to Hermione's fix-me-up house. The carriage shuttered and lurched every once and awhile but other than that the ride was quiet and peaceful. Something Draco was thankful for.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He must have dosed for Hermione was shaking his shoulder.

"Wake up Malfoy, we're here," she said. He looked past her and saw that the sun had begun to set.

"Where do you live?" Draco asked. "It must have taken us ages to get here!"

"A few hours yes," Hermione said. "Diagon Alley is about two hundred miles from here."

Draco hopped out of the carriage and took a look around him. Many trees surrounded the home and it seemed they'd climbed up a huge hill to get here. His gray orbs fell on the house and his eyes widened.

It was huge, about three stories and extremely wide. Window shutters were hanging crooked, and paint had flaked off everywhere… Many of the windows were broken and everything was dusty. The porch that went all the way around the house had several holes in it, so that you could see the dirt below it. It was clear Draco had his work cut out for him.

"Granger?" he asked turning to look at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Why don't you just fix this up with magic?" he asked.

"Because we're going to do this the muggle way!" she chirped happily. Malfoy looked as if he were going to be sick. Everything seemed to be closing in on him. He turned towards the house and it seemed to grow ten times higher than it originally was.

"Are you alright Malfoy?" she asked looking worried. Draco turned towards her swaggering and he promptly fainted.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

His gray eyes opened and he found himself looking up at the sky, which was steadily darkening. Then she came into view, holding a bucket over him, with little droplets of water falling off of the rim. He realized he was wet yet again for that day and he shivered as the light breeze touched his bare chest.

"Are you okay?" Hermione asked, kneeling next to him. He pushed a few strands of wet hair out of his eyes.

"Do I look like I'm bloody okay?" Draco asked, standing up.

"I think you just had an anxiety attack," Hermione said. "Let's go to my cottage around the back and we'll get you something to eat."

She then stood and disappeared around the back of the house.

Draco stared after her, quite confused. Why was she being so kind to him? After he'd spent most of his childhood years tormenting her… He would've thought that this moment was pure gold to Granger. She could finally get her revenge on him just as Potter had.

He thought about it a little more. It's because they had been children. Things had changed dramatically since then, and the mudblood was a woman now, just as he was a man. He supposed it was time to start acting like an adult.

Although he didn't think this was where he'd be in five years when he was seventeen. A slave to a muggle born witch. He was a pureblood for god sakes! But he knew in his heart that your bloodline meant nothing in this new age. He had supposed that the Death Eaters would overtake everything and the mudblood filth of the world would replace him in his present position.

"Are you coming?" Hermione asked. He was snapped out of his thoughts and he looked up to find her standing by the porch. Draco stood and walked towards her. She turned and went around the house again.

When the war was taking place, Granger would've never turned her back on him the way she just had.

When she came into view again, Draco saw that she was bent over a small flower patch, examining a purple flower. It was larger than all the other ones and it had grown the tallest. She smiled down at it happily and walked inside.

He took in the tiny cottage and immediately felt as if everything was closing in on him again. He'd never been confined to such a small place. But he followed his mistress inside and found her sitting at a small circular table. There was a chair opposite of her where she sat, magically peeling potatoes.

It was a little more spacious on the inside then it looked on the outside.

"You can sit down if you'd like," Hermione said, motioning to the chair across from her as she started chopping the vegetables. Draco did as he was told and watched her. Maybe this situation would be better than he thought it would be.

She pointed her wand at a kettle in the fireplace, and a fire erupted under it, making the water in the kettle boil. She conjured up a slab of beef and chopped it into neat cubes with her wand. Draco was tempted to reach over and eat it raw, but he clamped his hands together in his lap. The meat flew across the room, through the air and landed in the pot with a splash. She through some garlic, onions, oregano, salt, and pepper in with the meat and put a lid over the kettle.

It was then that she turned towards Draco and muttered something. It felt as though his hair was being tugged at. It then all fell into his face untangled, but not clean.

"It should be easier to wash that way," Hermione replied when he examined his long hair. It still had its smooth silky consistency to it. A lot of the dirt had fallen into his lap though.

She then conjured several cleaning products including shampoo, a razor in case he wanted to shave off his beard, shaving cream, soap, a washrag, and two large towels.

"The shower's at the back," Hermione said.

"Are you trying to tell me that I stink Granger?" Draco asked, his eyebrows raised.

"Yes," she said plainly. Draco's cheeks reddened.

"I've smelled bad for so long I don't even notice it anymore," he said bitterly, rubbing the dirt off of his clothes. Hermione took in his attire. A dirty looking peasant's shirt that was ripped and hanging off of him, that used to be white, and a pair of tattered pants, with one pants leg missing. She conjured some plain black robes that appeared neatly folded next to the towel.

"Go on then," she said. "When you get out dinner will be ready."

**A/N: Alright. I decided to go ahead and post because it's done and I don't want to just leave it sitting there. Hope you enjoyed it.**


	4. Draco's Lesson

**A/N: Thank you to old and new reviewers. I'm sorry to say this chapter may not be quite as eventful as people may like but for some reason I'm having a slow start on things… Anyways, I'm working up to the good stuff and it's safe to say the next chapter won't revolve around the same exact thing. I'll probably give you the next chapter right away because I'm trying to get myself out of the hole I am in! Love to all:D**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Draco looked at his face all covered in foam. Shaving cream? He'd never actually heard of this strange product but he found it fun to play with.

He picked up the razor and ran it down his cheek, wishing Granger would just come in and zap him again, so that the hair was just magically gone. He rinsed the razor off in the water in the small sink, turning it cloudy and continued. It took him a good half an hour and when it was over he hadn't nicked himself once. He was slowly starting to look like his old self again, even though he was much to thin and skeletal like. His pale skin didn't help with his lively look either.

He picked up the brush that was on the sink and ran it through his wet hair, which had returned to its shiny platinum blonde color again, after the dirt was thoroughly removed. It took three washes to make Draco feel like he was truly clean again.

His reflection was strange to him. He found that he looked very much like his father, with his hair having grown right below his shoulders, even though his nose wasn't quite as big as Lucius'. He then understood why he'd always kept it short.

"Granger?" he called.

In the small kitchen, Hermione looked up from stirring the stew.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Would you come in here for a moment?" he asked. Hermione was slightly curious as to what he may need. She opened the door to find him standing there with a towel wrapped around his waist. She looked away awkwardly, not wanting it to seem as if she was staring at him.

"What do you need?" she asked.

"Do you have some scissors?" Draco inquired.

"What for?" she asked.

Draco raised his eyebrows, staring at her. "To cut my hair," he said.

"Oh, right," she muttered. She quickly conjured the scissors for him and turned to leave him to himself.

"Can you help me?" he asked.

Hermione sighed. "You can't do it by yourself?" she muttered.

"I still care about my appearance!" Draco said. "I don't want to look as if I was tossed through a weed hacker! I don't have eyes on the back of my head."

"Alright," Hermione said holding up her hands. "Calm down!"

Draco sat down on the small toilet with his back to her. She approached him almost cautiously, as if Malfoy would turn around a lash out at her. She picked up her brush and noticed that there were a few blonde strands of hair weaved in with her brown ones. She shrugged and began running it through his hair, to get any tangles out.

She grasped his silky hair in a ponytail and snipped it off right above her hand. The light blonde strands fell to the floor around the base of the toilet. She evened it out at the base of his neck.

"There," she said putting him in front of the mirror. He smiled, slicking it back with his hand. Now he looked like his old self again.

"Dinner's ready," she said, before leaving the bathroom.

Draco pulled on the robes and followed her out.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco lay in the small bed Hermione had conjured up for him that night, with his hands behind his head. The mattress was slightly stiff but it was better than anything he'd slept on in awhile. The sheets smelled clean and fresh to him and that was more than he'd hoped for.

He couldn't help but wonder where he would've been if Granger hadn't come for him. He knew that wherever it was it would have been worse. He imagined he would've been living in some wizard's basement where it was dark and cold all the time. Sort of like the holding cell he was kept in at the slave shop. He would probably of had stale bread to eat and a moldy blanket to sleep with and no companionship. He imagined his master or mistress would have worked him until he dropped and then let him have a few hours of sleep before waking him up at dawn to do it all over again.

He thought it would have been this way, because that's what his father did to the house elves. He knew that was a hard life to have to live, and it had truly scared him when he thought that might be what he was going to go through.

He smiled at a new thought that occurred to him.

Potter and Weasley had done him a favor. It made him smile because he knew that if they were aware they'd helped him instead of hurting him, they would promptly die of shame. Plus Granger could make a bitchin' groovy stew. **(A/N: Had too. :D)**

Draco snickered to himself in the dark, his mouth over his hand, yet at the same time he felt like weeping. He knew it was only because he was so thankful to be back in a warm bed, with a full stomach. He sighed and suddenly felt very tired. The last thing he saw that night was the moon shining outside of the cottage, before his eyelids grew heavy and finally drew him into deep sleep.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Malfoy!" Granger called from the kitchen. He woke to the smell of pancakes. "Get in here! It's ten thirty and we have to get started today!"

Draco groaned but got up, pulling on his robes that he'd worn from last night. There was something in the corner of his room that hadn't been there when he'd gone to bed. It was a small wardrobe. The doors to it stood open revealing several pairs of robes in it. Below the robes were a set of drawers. In them there were boxers, and socks. They were all black and Draco figured it was so that they didn't get stained.

Below the socks and underwear there were two more drawers. Inside those were black muscle shirts and pants made out of a slightly heavy material. He read the small tag on the back pocket that said: blue jeans.

"Jeans?" he muttered.

He quickly changed out of his old robes and threw on a pair of the "blue jeans" and a black muscle shirt, along with boxers and socks under everything. It was then that he noticed two pairs of shoes on top of the drawers. There was a pair of work boots, and a pair for casual wear. He laced up the work boots and went through the small living area to find Granger already eating.

"Dig in," she said through a mouth full of pancakes. Her hair was tied back into a tight ponytail, and she wore a T-shirt with the same type of blue jeans that Draco wore.

He sat down and served himself some pancakes, bacon, scrambled eggs, and toast, with orange juice. He cleared the plate before Hermione even had time to start on her eggs and sat back with a hand on his stomach looking satisfied. He looked up to find Granger staring at him with her mouth open, holding her fork up poised to shovel some eggs in her mouth.

"Wow," she said in awe. Draco burped loudly, and held up a hand looking quite embarrassed.

"Holy be Jesus!" he whispered looking shocked. "Did you hear that!" he asked astounded. Of course he knew she had but he had to ask. Hermione stared at him a moment longer before she snorted loudly, dropped her fork, and began laughing hysterically.

Draco pushed a strand of hair out of his eyes, his cheeks red.

"I never knew you had it in you!" Hermione laughed. "That was worthy enough to rival Ron's best belch!"

"Yes, well I out do him in everything," Draco muttered.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was eleven thirty by the time they actually got outside. Hermione smiled up at the house.

"Remind me again why you want to do this the muggle way," Draco said staring at the house and cringing.

"Because Malfoy, it's more rewarding when you do it by hand," Hermione said. "Then you have something to be proud of when you're done. I've always liked to work towards my goals so that I can feel like it's worthwhile at the end of the day. Magic is too simple for me."

"I think you're crazy," Draco grumbled.

"Maybe so," Hermione said smiling. "But you'll see what I mean."

**A/N: Alright people, here it is. Hope you all enjoyed it. Any reviews are welcome! Thanks to all of you who did review again. The constructive criticism is much appreciated:D**


	5. Harry and Ron Find Out

**A/N: I've been thinking about something… I was thinking a may write a story on the Great Death Eater War… Who knows. Anyways on with it right? Here is the newest installment to my story. Thank you to all reviewers! Keep all the great reviews coming and I shall keep writing for you! (Almost like a performing monkey.) Oh and guess what? It's my sixteenth birthday on Thursday the fifteenth! I'm so happy cause all of my family's coming into town seeing as it's summer and I can't wait. But will it keep me from writing? Hell NO! Anyways, thought I'd throw that little tid bit of information in there. On with the story! Love to all! XOXO :D**

**Disclaimer: There are some song lyrics in this story that are not mine but that of a woman named Yvonne Elliman. Just fair warning cause people can sue you for stuff like that. Not like that lady reads stuff like this but you never know right?**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

**Notorious Death Eater Caught and Another Still On the Run!**

**_Draco Malfoy_, son of Lucius Malfoy was caught last Friday afternoon. He was found hiding in a small cave located in the heart of _Ghost Forest_ about sixty miles away from the original battlegrounds of the Great Death Eater War that lasted nearly five years. _Harry Potter_ and his team of elite Aurors brought Malfoy into a slave shop later that evening. **

**The slave shop owner told reporters, "I'm happy to see such a dangerous man finally caught. He has no right wondering around unchecked! He could hurt people!"**

**As for Draco Malfoy, rumors say a young muggleborn woman named _Hermione Granger_ bought him for the expensive fee of nine thousand galleons on Saturday morning, a day after he was turned over to the slave owners. Draco Malfoy and Miss Granger haven't been seen since. **

**As for _Lucius Malfoy_, he's been reported missing since the last day of the Great Death Eater War. His body was not identified among the hundreds that died on _Witch_ _Mountain_, and wasn't found around the immediate area. Many have reason to believe he is still out there. The Aurors Elite Special Forces Squad urges the wizarding community to keep their eyes sharp and ears open for any mishap going on around them, and to have their wands ready at all times. Any sighting should be reported immediately, and if possible the assailant should be held until he can be taken into custody. Keep in mind, the eldest Malfoy is still armed and is considered _highly dangerous! _**

Ron Weasley sat at his cubicle reading the article and suddenly slammed his mug down, sloshing steaming hot coffee all over his desk. His eyes widened as he read over everything again and he felt his insides begin to boil.

"Harry!" he called racing into his best friend's cubicle, to find Harry doing some paperwork. Harry looked up startled, his ballpoint pen poised to write something.

"What is it?" he asked, taking in Ron's livid expression. Ron threw the newspaper down over Harry's work, his mouth drawn into a straight line, his eyes bulging slightly.

"Read that," he said pointing to the article. Harry scanned the first couple of lines and looked up at Ron with his eyebrows raised.

"This is just about Malfoy's capture Ron," he said with a sigh. "What makes you so angry about that?"

"Not that!" Ron snarled. "_That_," he said darkly pointing to Hermione's name. At the sight of his best friend's name printed in italics Harry immediately began to read the paragraph thinking she may be in trouble. But he quickly understood what was really eating away at Ron.

"Oh," Harry mumbled suddenly troubled. "Oh, no."

"What the bloody hell does she think she's doing?" Ron snarled. "Nine thousand galleons for that worthless little ferret? What is she trying to prove?"

Harry sighed thinking hard.

"I mean, Malfoy is not a house elf! He doesn't need to be rescued and I'll be damned if she thinks he's entitled rights!" Ron fumed, pacing Harry's cubicle. "I bet she's trying to teach us a lesson. You know how much she hates slavery! I bet she's mad because we didn't have any pity for him and just threw him to the dogs!"

"Ron-" Harry began.

"But he deserves that Harry! He deserves to suffer for all of the people he's killed!"

"Ron!" Harry repeated a little louder.

"He's responsible for Dumbledore's death for god's sake! How can she possibly have any compassion for that little piece of-"

"RONALD!" Harry finally screamed. Ron stopped in mid-sentence, and looked at his best friend, his chest heaving.

"What?" Ron asked, his face still bright red with rage.

"We haven't even talked to Hermione yet," Harry replied suddenly feeling very tired, despite the fact that it was only ten o'clock in the morning. "Let's not jump to conclusions okay?"

Ron sighed, and his anger seemed to be melting away for the time being. Harry figured it was good for him to get all of the yelling out now, so that he would've cooled down by the time they talked to Hermione. That way, he didn't lunge at Malfoy, and he didn't start a huge fiery argument with Hermione who might have come up with a Slave Salvation program similar to her house elf petition S.P.E.W. If she had, Harry thought it might have been something like: S.H.F.D.E.E . Meaning, Safe Haven For Death Eaters Everywhere. And when you tried to pronounce it as a word it sounded a lot like the word shifty. As in a suspicious plan to help murderous criminals escape the cruel world of muggleborns.

Harry smiled, slightly amused with his train of thought.

"Alright, but let's try and get a hold of Hermione as soon as possible," Ron muttered, before stalking out of Harry's cubicle with his shoulder's hunched.

Harry threw his ballpoint pen down and buried his face in his arms, groaning loudly. If he wasn't running around trying to catch Death Eaters, then it was something else. He was very curious as to why Hermione picked Malfoy out of all of the slaves she could've bought. And if she needed extra help then why hadn't she asked them? He thought about that more and the answer came to him.

It was because Ron and he were too busy to go all the way up to her small cottage to "help out" around the house she planned to totally remodel. That's why she hadn't asked them, and that's why they never offered. But still, why Draco Malfoy? The very man who had made her life hell back at Hogwarts, and who had murdered countless friends of hers? Oh yes, Harry had seen the youngest existing Malfoy in action and it wasn't pretty. The worst part about it was he seemed to take pleasure in making his fellow muggleborn, half-blooded, and pureblooded wizards suffer at his hand.

He had heard, during the war, that Narcissa Malfoy was expecting another baby. She was a little too old, in Harry's opinion, to be expecting anything but the change of life at her age. Yet there it was plain as day. Rumor had it, that Lucius Malfoy was insuring he had an heir to the Malfoy fortune in case Draco died in battle. Even if it was a female heir. But shortly after Narcissa's pregnancy was discovered, so was the fact that she'd been harboring foreign Death Eater's into England to fight in the war. Mostly from the states. She was taken into custody, as well of as many of the foreign and native Death Eaters the ministry could capture, and died a month later, from self inflicted starvation, taking her unborn baby with her. She had refused to talk and to eat, in turn dying without any last words to her husband or son.

Lucius Malfoy had been enraged at the news, but there was nothing he could do about it. Draco however, had been devastated at the news of his mother and unborn sibling. He'd always been close to Narcissa and knew she'd died to keep his father's and his whereabouts a secret. He'd read in the paper that they'd drugged her food with a truth serum. **(A/N: Verataserum?)** His mother had been naturally gifted in potions, and even though the potion was seemingly "untraceable" she'd been suspicious because the truth serum caused a slight discoloration to food. Not a lot of wizards knew that or noticed it. That's why the best potions masters put it in drinks. Usually dark wines, so that the serum would be ingested without any sort of suspicion.

Harry figured it wouldn't be long before the ministry sent Harry and his squad, squad "A", out to hunt Lucius Malfoy down. He supposed they'd wait a bit longer to see if the dark wizard would turn up dead, and if he did not, they'd put the A.E.S.F.S on a code red search, including all of the Auror squads. Until then, the squad was on stand by, meaning Harry had more time to catch up on his filing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco Malfoy was sweating up a storm as he knocked down a wall with a sledgehammer. He had a red bandana tied around his nose to keep himself from breathing in any dust.

Hermione worked a little ways away, kneeling and pulling up tile on the ground floor bathroom. A little muggle radio sat on the old-fashioned bathtub rim, pumping out old-fashioned muggle music off of a battered cassette tape. The woman sang:

Don't know why

I'm survin' every lonely day

When there's got to be no chance for me

My life would end

And it doesn't matter how I cry

My tears, so far, are a waste of time

If I turn away

Am I strong enough to see it through?

Go crazy is what I will do

If I can't have you

I don't want nobody baby

If I can't have you…uh-huh, oh!

If I can't have you

I don't want nobody baby

If I can't have you…uh-huh!

Can't let go, and it doesn't matter how hard I try

I gave it all so easily to you my love

To dreams that never will come true

Am I strong enough to see it through?

Go crazy is what I will do…

And so on and so forth. It made Draco want to vomit. Didn't women have more to do than just pine around for men? I mean, Draco himself had caused enough women to pine over him in his younger years, and a lot of them found the Death Eater thing hot. But really? Was it necessary to spend so much time crying over some guy who probably wasn't even nice to the woman in the beginning? Draco knew he was never particularly nice after the dirty deeds were done.

There was a light tapping that pulled him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to find a white snowy owl looking in at him. Draco wiped his forehead and turned to Hermione for instruction.

"Oh!" she said delighted. "That's Harry's owl, Hedwig!"

Draco scratched at his collar, which by wizard law, he wasn't allowed to remove. More so, he couldn't remove it from his neck, only Hermione could. It kept him from leaving the immediate vicinity of his mistress, as well as keeping him from hurting her. She had removed it for him so he could wash the skin underneath it the night before.

"And?" he asked. Hermione looked at him sternly, her hands on her hips. "And you want me to let it in…" he muttered dully, walking over to the window. He opened it, dust flying up into the air as he yanked it up. The owl held out her leg to him and he untied the message, handing it to Hermione who had come up behind him. She gave the bird a gentle pat on it's head and it flew off with a soft hoot.

Hermione saw a newspaper clipping stapled to a short message. The newspaper clipping's heading read, "Notorious Death Eater Caught and Another Still on the Run!"

Her eyes immediately fell on her name, which was highlighted and she read through the article calmly. She knew Ron would be angry having to find out this way. But Harry… Well she expected he wouldn't overreact.

The small message read:

_Mione,_

_Ron and I are going to stop by this evening to talk. Nothing serious we just want to make sure everything's all right. See you at eight o'clock sharp. _

_Love From,_

_Harry_

She sighed. Her boys… always checking up on her.

"Great," Draco grumbled, somewhere behind her. "Now I get to see the Wonder Trio reunited!"

"You hush up!" Hermione said, handing him his sledgehammer.

**A/N: Okay. So there you have it! Something different, something new. Although there's nothing borrowed or blue. That's what I thought of as I wrote that sentence. Anyways, leave me your reviews and opinions please! So that I can get on with the story:D**


	6. The Confrontation

**A/N: So sorry for the wait people. As some of you may know I had a lot of things going on last week and I thought I'd have time to write but it turned out I didn't have a single minute to myself so yeah. And then as you know yesterday was father's day so I wasn't home for most of the day. We went to visit my grandpa. Not like you really wanted to know that… Anyways, here's chapter six! Hope you enjoy it! Leave me a review, as it is important that I know what you think. Love to all:D**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Hermione sat by the window in her small kitchen buttering rolls. Every few minutes she'd look at the muggle clock on her wall and shake her head. Draco glanced up from peeling potatoes and noticed the roll in her hand was beginning to crumble into small pieces on the table in front of her, for she wasn't paying attention. The butter knife slowly rubbed more and more of the biscuit off.

"What's the matter with you?" Draco asked finally, sounding quite agitated. "You're ruining that perfectly good biscuit!"

She looked down at the small shredded piece of bread in her hands and sighed, throwing it across the table at him. It landed in his potato shavings and he grabbed it, stuffing the remaining part of the biscuit into his mouth.

"I'm just nervous," Hermione said, arranging the buttered pieces of bread on the plate neatly. "I know they're going to be mad about what I've done and I just don't want them to be angry with me."

"What have you done?" Draco asked scratching under his collar, which now had pointy silver spikes on it. He'd talked Hermione into conjuring the spikes for him so that he'd look tougher. She had said that it was ridiculous but had done it so he would stop nagging. In Hermione's opinion, it made Malfoy look like an overly tall guard dog.

"I bought you," Hermione said bluntly. "They hate you!"

"You hate me," Malfoy added, as he reached for another potato.

"I do not," Hermione said. "I hated you while we were in school-"

"And during the war," Malfoy piped in.

"_And_ during the war," Hermione said rolling her eyes.

"And now," Draco replied, as Hermione cleared away the potato peelings with her wand.

"I don't hate you now," Hermione said. "I don't know why. I guess my feelings died right along with the war. When it ended everything ended. I knew nothing would ever be the same."

"And the Grinch's heart grew three sizes that night," Draco said.

"You're the Grinch," Hermione replied with a scowl.

"Am not," Draco said. "Anyway what's your point? Everyone knows you bought me. It was in the paper…"

"Yes but you're Draco Malfoy," Hermione said.

"So I'm aware," Draco replied sarcastically. "No need to tell me my own name Granger."

"God, I knew you wouldn't understand!" she snapped, conjuring four more rolls and returning to her task of buttering and arranging.

Draco fell silent, almost feeling a bit guilty. Was this one of those moments when he should've listened? Why did he even care? He sighed and began peeling another potato.

"Look Granger, you're a grown woman now," Draco mused simply. "You have every right to make your own decisions with out Potter and Weasel having a say in what you do. If you want to buy your best friend's worst enemy and keep him prisoner in your home as a slave, then so be it. It doesn't matter what they think and you don't owe them an explanation for any of your actions."

She looked up, her eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Wow Malfoy that actually sounded smart," she muttered, placing a dinner roll carefully on the plate.

"Believe it or not, I do have some brains in this gorgeous head of mine," Draco replied, tapping his temple with the knife he was using.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eight o'clock came around too soon, in Hermione's opinion. She'd made dinner for her two best friends and her slave. It was set neatly on the round table that he been enlarged to hold the food and seat three men and herself. Draco sat near the fire, picking at his nails with the knife he held in his hand. He whistled softly and held his hand in front of him to admire his handy work. A knock came at the small cottage door and he perked up, almost like a guard dog, a small grunt coming from his throat.

"Answer that will you?" Hermione hollered from the bathroom. Draco sighed, and got to his feet. He then glided to the door and threw it open to find Potter and Weasel standing there staring at him. Harry held a bottle of wine and Ron held some flowers. They were blood red and looked slightly like lilies.

"Malfoy," Harry said with a stiff nod in Draco's direction. Draco didn't say or do anything, he merely glared at them, a loose strand of blonde hair falling into his cold gray eyes. He stepped aside and allowed them to enter through the door that was a tiny bit wider than Draco's shoulders.

They entered, watching Draco as they went. He raised a light eyebrow at them.

"See something you like?" he snarled.

"You haven't changed a bit," Ron growled, holding the crimson lilies quite tightly as though he were going to use them against Draco.

"What did you expect?" Draco asked. "Did you want me to welcome you with open arms and a big fake smile? When you're the one responsible for me being stuck here with the muggle born? Doing muggle work on her stupid house when I could be free to live as I want?"

"Yeah in a cave, dirty and rodent infested, smelling like human feces," Harry muttered sarcastically.

"We never speak of that!" Draco growled turning and pointing his knife at Harry.

"What's the matter?" Ron snarled. "Embarrassed?"

Draco's cheeks reddened and he turned and stalked off towards the back of the house where he entered his room and slammed the small door. Hermione hurried out with her eyes wide.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Nothing," both Harry and Ron replied innocently. They enveloped her in hugs and kissed her on top of her head. She smiled, happy to see them, even though she was slightly suspicious of why her slave had just stormed out of the cozy kitchen.

"So how have you two been doing?" she asked glancing at Draco's closed door.

"Good. It's just work all of the time," Ron replied, sitting in one of the wooden chairs. "We haven't caught Lucius Malfoy yet but we have our people on the job. Nothing new."

"Keep it down," Hermione said. "Draco probably won't be happy to find out you're now hunting his father."

"Since when have you called him Draco?" Ron asked, the growing anger traced in his voice.

"Since we've both grown up and are _mature_, Ronald," she snapped looking at him sternly.

"He still calls you a muggle born!" Ron pointed out stubbornly.

"Because he's of the male species. It seems boys never do turn into men," she shot back at him.

Harry cleared his throat.

"I feel like I'm back at Hogwarts," he muttered, leaning against the wall. At that Draco came back out of the room in a wife beater and a pair of jeans, wearing his dirty work boots that were spattered in paint.

"I'm going to work on the house," he muttered.

"Why?" Hermione asked. "Dinner's almost ready! And it's already dark out!"

"I say you let him go," Ron said glaring in Draco's general direction, but not looking directly at him.

"That's why," Draco said pointing at the red head.

"God can we all just grow up just for tonight?" Hermione asked. "I took a long time preparing dinner and I don't need you two kicking each other under the table the whole time because you can't let go of the past!"

"Why let go Hermione?" Ron snarled, standing up. "When he's responsible for all the deaths and pain we've gone through?"

"It wasn't just him Ronald!" Hermione said, getting red in the face. "It was Voldemort and his minions!"

"And last time I checked, Malfoy was one of his minions!" Ron yelled. Draco leaned against the wall looking quite intrigued with the growing argument.

Draco crossed his arms across his chest, the dark mark disappearing against his body.

"So what Ron! Things change! People change!" she cried at him.

"Look at him Hermione! He hasn't changed a bit and if you can't see that then you're just an… an idiot!" Ron bellowed.

"How dare you!" Hermione shrieked. "Can't you see that I'm just trying to help him get a new start on life? Can't you understand that? Yes I know he's a bad person but it was a horrible way to get revenge on him the way you did! Any cruel wizard could've gotten their hands on him!"

"And he would've deserved it!" Ron shot back.

"Well I think that he could be more than an ex Death Eater. And I don't think you deserve to bask in the glory of knowing you ruined somebody else's life," Hermione said.

"Oh that's rich! Righteous Hermione, always helping those in need! He's _Malfoy_!" Ron spat bitterly. "Are you going to provide shelter for Lucius Malfoy too, when he gets caught?"

"I don't know Ron, will it eat you alive inside if I do?" Hermione growled dangerously. "Because if so, you might as well just bring ol' Lucius right to my door step!"

Ron looked shocked, his eyes bulging slightly.

"Right," he muttered, giving her a bitter smile. He then sat down, with his arms crossed against his chest. "I never knew you'd end up helping Death Eaters Hermione. You might as well call yourself a traitor."

At that, Hermione reached over swiftly, picked up a dinner roll, and hurled it at Ron. She then went for another.

"That's typical Ronald!" she screeched as he was hit over and over again with buttered biscuits. "For you to look at it that way! I should've known you wouldn't be able to handle it! You're just the same selfish, jealous, ignorant git that I knew back in school!"

With that she walked over to her front door and exited the small house, slamming it behind her. Draco swore he felt the whole house shake. He shrugged and sat down, digging in to the shepherd's pie Hermione had made. He grabbed a roll and poured himself some tea.

The two men looked at him in disbelief.

"What?" he snapped at them. "She's not my friend. And I wasn't the one that just hurt her feelings. You stupid git," he added for good measure, looking at Ron. "Now I have to deal with her moping around the rest of the night because she's upset with you."

Harry sat down and served himself some food.

"You sure have made yourself comfortable in Hermione's house," Ron growled, glaring at Draco.

"It's because I live here too," Draco said, looking at him dully. "You know, me and her have been getting along quite well these days…" Draco waited for Ron's reaction. His face reddened and his nostrils flared slightly.

"You-" Ron began, advancing slightly on Malfoy.

"Maybe you should go talk to Hermione," Harry said standing up hurriedly to form a barrier between Ron and Malfoy.

"Yeah," Ron said not taking his eyes off of Draco, who was smirking evilly at him.

"This collar may make it so I can't hurt Granger, Weasel, but it doesn't keep me from hurting you," he drawled, sneering at the red head.

"I'm not afraid of you Malfoy," Ron whispered dangerously.

"You should be," Draco said, his lips curling maliciously. "I may not have a wand but you'd be surprised what I've learned over the years."

After the two were done exchanging words, Ron left to find Hermione, and Draco continued stuffing food in his face as though nothing had happened. He didn't even seem angry any more as Harry looked at him.

"You sure seemed to have returned back to normal," Harry replied.

Draco looked up from his plate and smirked.

"When you found me I was skin and bone. I was weak and dirty and fatigued," Draco said. "There wasn't much room in there for me to be me."

"You're still skin and bone," Harry pointed out.

"Ah see Potter? But I've had time to revive myself. I've been able to sleep and eat well. I can say I'm well on the road to recovery," Malfoy replied.

"Which I really don't think is a good thing," Harry said.

"Don't worry Potter. I can't break free. I'll be caught in an instance. And besides, why would I want to escape into a world that hates me and wants me dead?" he asked. "Here I'm shielded from all that. I don't believe it's worth it to risk my life in such a way. This is as free as I'll ever be."

"It seems Hermione's treating you fairly decently," Harry remarked.

"It seems she is," Draco agreed. "Although I'm not quite sure of her motives."

"Neither am I," Harry said shaking his head. "It seems she thinks you can better yourself here. It also appears that she doesn't want to see you hurt. I knew she'd be angry that we turned you in for slavery, even though she wasn't upset to hear about Severus Snape-"

"Snape was caught?" Draco asked in disbelief.

"Yes, last month," Harry replied. "Neville Longbottom's grandmother bought him."

"Wow," Draco said shaking his head.

"Perhaps she's trying to teach us a lesson," Potter went on. "When I called her to tell her that we'd found you she'd asked what we did with you. She didn't seem all that happy then either. Maybe it's so much as she's curious to see if you _can_ change, Malfoy. For the better. And she knew that any other wizard interested in you out there, was only interested in ending your life…"

Those words kept running through Draco's head that night as he lay in bed. Was he really that close to the end at that slavery shop? He was slightly curious about how many wizards would've showed up to compete for him. Who would've gotten him in the end? In his heart, Draco knew he really didn't want to know.

**A/N: All right. Again I'm sorry for the wait. I've just been busy and we had company in town for several days so yes. Here it is. I will be updating regularly again and all that now that I have time again. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and please review. Thanks for being patient! Anyways. I've got to be off now so, bye! **


	7. Lucretius Magnus

**A/N: He he. Here it is. Hope you all like it. It is important that you review… Because I will love you forever if you do:D Ha. Anyways. Here is the newest chapter to my story. Hope you all like it. And another thing. I am so sorry it has taken me so long to get new chapters posted. It must suck to have to wait for them all the time. But there was a problem with the website for a few days and it made it so it was not possible for me to update on ANY of my stories! Blah... Hope you all still like me. :) **

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

His gray eyes shifted from left to right as he walked through Diagon Alley. Even though he knew he looked different on the outside, he still felt as though someone would recognize him. That some random wizard he passed in the street would see through his disguise and expose him to the passerby.

He ran a nervous hand through his dark hair and approached the slave shop at the very entrance of Nocturne Alley. He looked around in wonder when he saw that all of the shops promoting dark magic had been closed. Nocturne Alley now looked as though it were pretty much an extension of Diagon Alley. Not a shady character in sight. He felt a bitter chill run through him.

An older man was outside of the slave shop holding a bell, bellowing to the whole world:

"Slaves! Slaves for sale! The bidding will begin at eight o'clock sharp! Some of your finest ex Death Eaters on display for all to see! Don't be late! Slaves in excellent condition!"

The elderly man with the bell stopped his yelling when he noticed the older looking male standing near him, watching him with interest.

"Can I help you sir?" the gray haired wizard asked.

"Yes," the man said. "I was wondering if you have any idea of the whereabouts of this male?" The dark headed man pulled a folded piece of paper from his cloak and handed it to the elderly man. "He's twenty two years old, about six feet tall, three inches."

"Ah yes, this here is Draco Malfoy," the elderly wizard replied, setting down his bell.

"Right," the dark headed wizard replied. "So you do know who he is?"

"Of course I do! Every wizard in the world has heard his name! One of the nastiest Death Eaters to ever walk the face of the Earth, don't you know! Apart from his father that is…"

The dark headed wizard seemed to tense up at the mentioning of the ever so notorious Lucius Malfoy.

"Still haven't caught that nasty piece of work," the elderly wizard went on oblivious to the wizard's reaction. "But I've heard that Harry Potter and his team have been assigned to hunt him down! Like the dog his is."

"Yes…interesting," the dark headed man said. "So can you tell me anything about _this_ man?" he asked again, pointing to the wanted poster of Draco Malfoy.

"Sure! He was brought in a few days back. Found him hiding out in a cave in the middle of Ghost Forest. Potter and his team brought him in to me that same night-"

"So he's here then?" the dark headed man asked, trying to shield his excitement.

"Afraid he's not sir. A young woman bought him… Perhaps you've heard of her. One of our greatest war heroes, Hermione Granger," the elderly man said with a bright smile. "Wonderful woman she is! Came in all disguised though, didn't even know it was her. Probably because she didn't want the word getting out that she was purchasing such a dangerous slave. Someone she shouldn't be wanting anything to do with… The community's suspicious, you know. What _would_ she want with someone like him?"

At this the dark headed wizard seemed quite intrigued.

"Do you have any idea if she's interested in selling?" he asked the elderly wizard.

"I doubt it, but what do I know? She might want to get rid of that horrible man. But like I said, I find it unlikely. She paid a lot of money for that there Death Eater. If you're interested though, you can come in and have a look at my slaves. All the Death Eaters you could want!" the elderly wizard said. "We're preparing them for the bidding in a half an hour but I could make an exception."

"Sure," the dark headed wizard said. "Why not…"

"You know, I didn't catch your name," the elderly wizard replied looking pleased. This wizard looked wealthy and he was hoping to make a sale.

"Lucretius Magnus," the dark headed wizard replied, holding out his hand. The elderly man looked delighted and he shook it.

"Come right inside Mr. Magnus!" the elderly wizard said. The two disappeared into the shop.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco came into the small kitchen and found Hermione reading near the window, eating cold cereal. He sat down, yawning, in a pair of boxers. His hair was sticking up in the back, because he went to bed with it wet.

"Hello," he said, grabbing a bowl and some cereal.

"Hm…" she mumbled in response. He frowned as he poured the corn puffs into his bowl.

"I didn't hear you come back in last night…" Draco said. "Not like I care I was just saying…"

She looked up from her bowl and sighed.

"I stayed in the house last night," she replied.

"Oh…" he muttered fidgeting with the table cloth. "Why?"

"I was embarrassed for having my little outburst… It's just that Ronald! He's just so…Uhh!" she growled throwing her hands in the air. "And you're really not that bad. Sarcastic and bitter yes, but not horrible."

"You wouldn't have said that two years ago," Draco mumbled, a soggy, half chewed corn puff falling out of his mouth.

"Gross, chew with your mouth closed," Hermione said. He grinned, milk dribbling down his chin, and wiped it off on the back of his hand. Hermione looked away, scowling. Draco chuckled.

"You're such a boy!" she said quite put off.

"I'm a man actually," Draco said stubbornly.

"Well you act like a boy," Hermione said. There was a strange silence between them after that.

"Did Weasley come and talk to you last night?" Draco asked.

"He tried," Hermione said. "But I kicked him in the shin and told him to leave."

"Wow, that's harsh, wouldn't you say Granger?" Draco asked.

"Not harsh. He was trying to tell me how stupid I was being again," Hermione replied. She promptly groaned and let her head fall onto the table. "I hate it when we fight."

"Maybe you shouldn't have bought me then," Draco said.

"Not you too," she said softly.

"Truthfully, I'd rather be here then anywhere else right now. The world is an ugly place Granger," Draco said. "Plus I don't have to take craps in a corner and sleep next to it. But we don't talk about _that_…"

At this Hermione giggled.

"I'm serious Granger," Draco said sternly.

"I'm sorry!" she said. "It's just funny the way you said it!"

"Yes well…" Draco muttered looking down at his cereal.

"Do you ever want to be somebody new?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"What?" Draco was caught off guard by the strange question.

"I mean, do you even want to try and better yourself?" she asked staring at him intently.

"Well…I guess," he muttered. "I haven't really thought about it."

"Do you ever regret what you've done? To put yourself in the situation where you have no choice in the way your life goes?" she asked.

"I can't really say that I care…" he muttered. "I don't feel bad. You've got to realize most of those men were trying to kill me. It wasn't that I was merciless, torturing people on the battlefield. When I attacked it was to save myself from being obliterated. You couldn't just expect me to stand back and let them shoot spells at me. Unforgivable curses at that! Spells that would kill me instantly if I were hit with one. War is war. It's ugly and it's tiring. I wasn't fighting on any side truthfully… I killed a lot of Death Eaters as well."

"Why?" Hermione asked, sounding quite interested in his stories. She'd always been curious about how the Death Eaters viewed the war.

"Let's just say I wasn't their favorite person," Draco said. "Us Death Eaters don't trust one another. That was part of the reason why we lost. We were too busy trying to take each other out to realize we were losing."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Er…Mr. Magnus sir?" Goyle asked from behind him as they walked down the street, Lucretius holding Goyle's leash tightly, pulling him along. He pulled him into an alley and began looking around for options.

"What?" Lucretius snarled at him.

"I just wanted to know where we're going is all…" Goyle said, his eyes wide. This man reminded him of someone he once knew.

"You're going to help me find my son," Mr. Magnus said.

"Oh? And who is your son sir?" Goyle asked.

"Honestly Gregory are you that thick?" Lucius Malfoy suddenly appeared looking quite angry. Gregory looked even more afraid as his best friend's father towered over him.

"Mr. Mal-" A gloved hand clamped over Gregory's mouth and he struggled like a wild animal caught in a net.

"Gregory I swear if you don't fall silent right this moment I will leave you to rot in this alley," Lucius hissed. Gregory fell limp in Lucius' arms and was released. He turned to find Lucretius Magnus back with a cold grin on his face.

"Now, do you have any idea how we can find out where the mudblood lives?" Lucretius asked in his strange American accent.

"How would I know?" Gregory asked defiantly. He was slapped across the face.

"You are _my_ slave Gregory. Therefore you will not talk to me in such a manner. Would you have used that tone on me when I was head of the Death Eaters?" Lucretius asked reasonably as an elderly couple strolled by in the rainy weather.

"No sir," Goyle whispered looking down at his feet.

"Then you will not talk to me like that now. I am your master and you will do as I say," Lucretius whispered.

"Yes sir," Goyle said sadly, not believing his luck. After all he'd been through, he had to get stuck with Lucius Malfoy as a master.

"Now," Lucretius said cheerily. "Any ideas of where we could start?"

"At the Auror office!" Goyle said after a moment of thought. "Potter and Weasley work there… You could talk to them. I didn't recognize you…So they probably won't either."

"Right…" Lucretius said thoughtfully. He closed his eyes tightly and when he opened them again they were a deep brown shade. "Show me where to go."

It was clear that the wheels were turning in Lucretius Magnus' mind as they walked down the street. An idea was brewing and knowing the true Malfoy behind those dark brown eyes told you that those ideas were never good. He smiled cheerily at a young woman passing by and she blushed furiously. Yup… He still had it in him.

**A/N: Alright. You must tell me what you think. Told you I'd be updating regularly. Love to those who reviewed. I'm afraid I will lose reviewers though because of that loooooong pause between updates and now the loooooong pause because of the website errors. :( Blah! Anyways. Review if you want more.**


	8. Getting Information

A/N: Okay. So here is chapter eight for all of you to read! Tell me what you think! Your reviews are important to me! 

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Lucretius Magnus was no longer present in England that day.

A man entered the Auror office, his walking stick in hand. He'd gotten a new one to hide his wand in. This one was plain, made of black wood. Goyle had stayed out of sight as to not provoke any suspicions. He ran a hand through his short brown hair and smiled kindly at the secretary.

"Hello," he said. "I'm here to see Mr. Potter."

"Do you have an appointment sir?" the woman asked.

"No," he said with a small smile. "Is he busy? Because I could come back another time…"

"I'm not sure," the secretary said blushing. "I'll see what I can do…er?"

"Matthias Llewellyn," Lucius replied with a smile. The secretary held out her hand and Lucius took it, kissing it lightly. She smiled widely at him. "And yours? My fair lady?"

"Sally," she said.

"Well that's a nice name, Sally," Matthias said.

"Let me just see what I can do for you," she replied. She disappeared into an office.

Lucius sat down, rolling his eyes. In the olden days he wouldn't have had to go to such lengths to talk to somebody. All he would have to do is walk in the door and people would flock to him, to fulfill his every need. But he was not a dumb man. He knew times had changed, and if he were to walk into a building now, with his true face on, people would flock to him, but for different reasons.

"Mr. Llewellyn?" Sally asked. He was snapped out of his thoughts when she came into the room.

"Yes?" Matthias asked curiously.

"Mr. Potter is busy with some paperwork right now, but his partner Ronald Weasley will speak to you," Sally said with a warm smile.

"Just as good," Matthias said, standing.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So what may I ask is your business in England Mr. Llewellyn?" Ron asked straightening some papers on his desk.

"I'm a journalist for a wizard magazine in the United States," Matthias said smoothly. "It's our Wizards Weekly magazine. I do a small column. Lately it's been focused around changes in the law… The Great Death Eater War, seeing as we had Death Eaters in the United States as well."

"I see," Ron said slightly fascinated.

"We've just gotten word that you're using slavery as a punishment for ex Death Eaters all over England. Our punishment in the U.S. so far has consisted of executions upon capture," Matthias muttered, pulling out a pad from his cloak that he'd just conjured up. He pulled out a ballpoint pen and poised it to write.

"Would it be alright if I asked you just a few questions? Your personal opinions and such," Matthias asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah," Ron said with a wide grin. "What would you like to know?"

"How do you feel about slavery?" Matthias asked.

Ron thought for a moment. "Well… I've never really liked it myself. Death Eater or no… What a lot of people don't understand is that it was a wizarding law that was passed by the Ministry of Magic. Aurors don't make the rules, and we do have to follow them. I do believe, however that they got a lot better then what was coming to them before hand. After the Ministry and Aurors got the dementors under control, the Death Eaters were up for the dark kiss, if you understand my meaning…"

Matthias nodded, scribbling down a few things. What Ron didn't see was that Mr. Llewellyn was doodling pictures of bunny rabbits with fangs, Harry Potter in a noose, the dark mark and other little insignificant things. He was listening all the same though.

"Go on," Matthias replied. He looked up to make eye contact, his bright green eyes meeting Ron's blue ones.

"In my opinion, some of them deserved it for the sort of things they've done. Such as the Malfoys, but they both got off easy.

"One was sold into slavery, and the other is still running free," Ron muttered.

"Running free?" Matthias asked.

"Yes. Lucius Malfoy," Ron replied. "My best friend bought his son."

"Who is your best friend, if you don't mind me asking," Matthias asked feeling as if he'd just discovered gold under his shoe.

"Hermione," Ron sighed. "She bought him the day he was supposed to go on the market. He's been living pretty good since then. Way more than he deserves."

"What did she buy a slave for?" Matthias asked, continuing his doodling as to not look suspicious.

"To help her fix up this house," Ron grumbled. "Not only that, but she's got the idea in her head that she can change Malfoy into a better person."

Matthias looked up slightly puzzled. Ronald Weasley seemed to be a very bitter individual. And apparently he hadn't had the opportunity to vent any of his feelings for he was doing it to a perfect stranger. And the mudblood changing his, Lucius' son? Good luck trying miss, Lucius thought. That's like trying to get water out of a rock.

"I don't think it's good for her to be up on that secluded hill all alone with the Death Eater… Even though the collar he wears keeps him from hurting her. Magic is not unstoppable and Draco Malfoy was one of the most powerful Death Eaters, which is surprising for his young age."

"How old is this slave you speak of?" Matthias asked, falsely interested.

"I think he's twenty-two, twenty-three… Something like that. I suppose it's mostly because his father was his private tutor when it came to the dark arts. Anyways, anything else?"

"Do you believe that the Death Eaters should've been thrown in Azkaban then?" Matthias asked.

"Yes," Ron said.

Matthias wrote the word yes down and closed his notebook, putting it back in his cloak.

"Thank you for your time Mr. Weasley," Matthias said holding out his left hand. Ron shook it and saw there was a tattoo on Mr. Llewellyn's arm. Ron's eyes widened and suspicion flooded him. He ripped up the journalist's sleeve but found that the tattoo was a small sun on his forearm, with two names inside of it. Linda and Grace.

Matthias chuckled.

"My wife and daughter's names Mr. Weasley," Llewellyn replied. "They're the light of my lives."

"Oh dear…" Ron muttered, his face turning as red as his hair. "I cannot tell you how sorry I am. Sometimes I don't know what gets into me."

"No harm done, Mr. Weasley. These are suspicious times," Matthias replied with a small shrug. "You never can tell who your enemies are."

"Isn't that the truth," Ron sighed, feeling relieved that the American journalist wasn't angry.

"Well I must be getting off now," Matthias said smoothly. "I've got other places to be now… Alas, I'm already late for my next appointment!"

And with that the wizard left the Ronald Weasley's office and entered into the busy street.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Matthias Llewellyn was walking he lifted his left sleeve and looked down at the little sun tattooed there. He had known Narcissa was going to have twin girls before she perished. Linda and Grace had been what they'd decided to call them. After Narcissa had died, Lucius had gotten the tattoo to remember the two daughters he'd never have, the sun represented his wife and one day, he'd have her name tattooed above it. He looked up and found that he felt very alone, and he realized he wanted his son very much.

He'd always been proud of Draco but had never really known the right way to show it. Draco had made a fine soldier for the Dark Lord's cause until the Death Eaters realized how weak he really was. Sure he knew how to use dark and powerful magic. And for a while it shielded Voldemort's true nature. He'd disappeared as soon as the final battle was going down to leave his followers to die for him while he hid.

As he was lost in thought, he rammed into someone, and the two of them both went sprawling on the floor.

"Bloody hell," some one groaned as they were sitting up.

Matthias sat up holding his lower back like an old man. When he stopped to think of it, he sort of was an old man.

Neither man had been watching where they were going.

"You should watch where you're-" but the blonde was cut off when he saw who it was that sat in front of him.

Matthias' eyes widened.

A/N: All right here it is. It's a bit shorter then the last couple of chapters have been. Remember to review and tell me what you think. Love to all!


	9. Milk and Juice

**A/N: Seeing as I thought leaving my readers waiting after such an awful cliff hanger :) I decided to post this now. I like to wait at least a couple of days for reviews and I will hold up my end of the bargain if you hold up yours:D I love to know your opinions and encourage you to tell me. Anyways, enjoy the chapter! I will be updating soon!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

"Draco!" he whispered, for his son was sitting before him in a spiked collar.

"Lord, God almighty," Draco whispered jumping to his feet. "You! What-"

"Draco, what happened?" came a female's voice. A brunette came into view holding a small basket. Draco knelt to pick up the veggies he'd dropped onto the worn street.

"I knocked into this man and we fell and now I'm picking up the vegetables off of the street, that have probably gotten bruised and squishy and my arse hurts," he replied sharply. "And I think I've scraped my back up."

Hermione moved his cloak out of the way and lifted up his work shirt. There were scratches that were bleeding slightly. She wiped most of it away with her sleeve and picked some small pebbles out of one of the cuts. His shirt had apparently come up when he'd fallen down.

He jumped and hissed as she did so.

"I'm sorry," Matthias said, picking up his walking stick. "I wasn't paying attention."

"It's all right," Draco grumbled. "Neither was I."

"Oh! Are you from America?" Hermione asked smiling kindly at him. Draco shot her a nasty look. Honestly how could she be so blind? This was his father! The evil Lucius Malfoy that she'd battled against in the years of the Great Death Eater War.

"As a matter of fact I am," Matthias said holding out his hand to her. She took it politely and shook it.

"I see that you have an ex Death Eater as a slave?" Matthias asked smiling with interest as Draco flushed furiously.

"I'm off to finish the shopping," he muttered, knowing Lucius wouldn't hurt his mistress. It was too risky.

"Alright," Hermione said.

Draco wandered off down the road, holding the bag of veggies in his arms. She could tell by the way his shoulders were hunched, that he was fuming. Being seen out in public bothered the youngest Malfoy. He was always being insulted or shoved. Hermione didn't like to see someone who was under her protection being hurt and embarrassed so she'd finally put a charm on him that didn't allow anybody to harm him. But what they said to him… well she couldn't control what came out of people's mouths. If she could she would.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I would like a gallon of milk and some apple juice," Draco said politely. The shopkeeper stared at him, malicious humor lighting his eyes.

"Now that you haven't got a wand you know how to be civil?" the wizard asked. "Why would I give my products to _you_ of all people?"

"Please sir," Draco muttered, already feeling a headache coming on. "They're not for me. They're for my mistress. She'll be angry if I don't come back with what she's asked me to get. And funny as it may sound to you, she won't be angry with me."

"And why should I be afraid of what your mistress thinks?" the wizard asked wickedly.

"Because she could hex you into next week if she doesn't get her apple juice," Draco replied. Be it as it may, Draco was proud to have Hermione as an owner. If he was going to belong to anyone as a slave, he got the right person.

"Oh yeah? And who is your owner?" the shopkeeper asked.

"You don't know?" Draco chuckled. "Funny. You must be the only one who can't read."

"Why you-" the wizard reached into his robes bringing out his wand. Draco looked at it unflinching. Nothing could get through the shield that Hermione had put up around him.

"What's going on here?" came a familiar voice. Draco turned to find Harry Potter standing in the doorway.

The shopkeeper quickly put his wand away.

"This slave was trying to rob me!" he said venomously, pointing an accusing finger in Draco's face.

Draco raised his eyebrows in amusement.

"Yes, and that's why I have a bag of galleons out ready to pay for a bloody gallon of milk and a jug of apple juice!" he replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "Potter, the man refuses to give it to me."

Harry sighed looking at the evidence before him.

If Malfoy was in Diagon Alley, Hermione wasn't far away.

Malfoy had a purple bag filled with galleons in his pale hand. The bag had HG embroidered onto it.

Malfoy wasn't holding the shopkeeper by the neck, demanding his milk and apple juice for free.

The man seemed to hate Malfoy even though he probably hadn't ever met him before now.

Harry sighed.

"Those products are for my best friend Hermione Granger," Harry said sternly. "I suggest you give Malfoy the products he requests or I shall have to speak to the ministry about your business tactics."

The man glared at Harry for a long time. But Harry was a respected man, and could probably get the wizard's shop shut down.

The shopkeeper muttered darkly to himself but fetched the products for Draco anyway.

"That'll be seven galleons," he muttered. Draco reached into the bag and gave him the money, scowling.

"Thank you for your time," Draco growled before he turned. "And thank you Potter. If you hadn't of shown up I'd still be arguing with that stupid prat over there."

Harry saw that this was genuine and he nodded without another word. Draco left to go find Hermione.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco entered a small diner, holding yet another bag in his arms. He looked down to find an elderly witch glaring up at him. Seeing as Draco was already in a foul mood he turned towards her.

"What?" he snarled. "Waiting for me to sprout horns and breathe fire?" he spat venomously. The woman let out a scandalized humph and turned away, bringing her cup of coffee to her lips.

Hermione looked up, recognizing that ridiculing tone anywhere. Her blonde slave made his way to the table. He glanced at the American Wizard sitting across from his mistress but avoided making eye contact. He already knew his father would be ashamed of him. He could just hear him asking:

"How could you be so stupid to be caught by Potter? I've taught you better than this. And now that disgusting Mudblood owns you and works you like a house elf!"

Draco shuttered, not wanting to look at Lucius.

"Did you have any more trouble?" Hermione asked.

"I went to the dairy shop you told me to go to for the milk and juice and the man refused to give it to me," Draco muttered, plucking some bacon off of Hermione's plate. She didn't seem to mind. Draco glanced up to see the darkness appear in Lucius' Malfoy's eyes but it was gone as quickly as it had come.

Draco knew Lucius thought he'd gotten way too comfortable with the mudblood.

"But he did give it to you right?" Hermione asked, looking at the bag.

"Yes," Draco said lightly. "After I wrung his neck…"

Hermione's eyes widened, and Matthias smirked Malfoy style.

"Oh Draco you didn't!" Hermione said worriedly.

"No," Draco sighed. "I wanted to though. Potter showed up actually."

Lucius choked on his tea.

"Really?" Hermione asked with interest, sipping at her tea as well. "Are you alright Mr. Llewellyn?"

Lucius grunted, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

"Yup. And he threatened the man into giving me the products I desired," Draco finished, taking a bite out of her toast.

She smiled in appreciation of her best friend. Noble Potter.

"Anyways, what are you two doing?" Draco asked, more to his father than to Hermione. Draco was hiding it remarkably well, but he was panicking.

"Mr. Llewellyn is an American journalist," Hermione said cheerily. "He wanted to know what my take is on slavery and what sort of things I have you do for me."

"Right," Draco murmured eating a small chunk of honeydew. "So what is it?" he asked her.

"I told him I think it's wrong and unjustified," she said.

"Which doesn't explain why you own a slave," Malfoy grumbled.

"I don't treat you like a slave," Hermione snapped. "You're eating my fruit."

Draco looked down at the bit of cantaloupe in his hand and set it down in her bowl again. She smiled at him and pushed it in front of him.

"Anyway, I've got to go to the lavatory so I'll only be a moment," Hermione said. She then got up and walked around the back of the diner.

"What are you doing here?" Draco hissed so nobody could hear.

"I came to find out where you were!" Lucius whispered. "If I would've known you've made yourself so comfortable here with that useless mudblood, I would've let it be. If you want to live your life out as a slave so be it! And to think, I was actually proud of you!"

"You want me to act suspicious around her?" Draco asked. "I was trying to cover for _you_!"

"I don't need you to cover for me!" Lucius growled in his ear. "I've _never_ needed you to cover for me! If I remember correctly, you were always cowering behind me."

"I was just a boy, father," Draco whispered so only Lucius could hear. "When you initiated me into Riddle's clan I was fourteen years old!"

"You were a soft boy," Lucius said contemptuously. "I should've known you'd choose the cowardly way. Hide behind the mudblood so that the world can't touch you. Join the right side and behave because you're to scared to fight for your freedom!"

"You _think_ I _want_ this?" Draco fumed. "I hid for three months straight trying to stay out of the Auror's grasp!"

"Apparently you didn't hide well enough," Lucius spat.

"Well just so you know, I'd do anything to be free again," Draco snapped before Hermione came back into view.

"Anything?" Lucius asked, a familiar glint coming into his eyes. Draco's throat constricted. He knew that look. And it only promised bad things.

"Anyways, it was nice meeting you Mr. Llewellyn. I hope you have enough information there," Hermione said, taking a hold of her basket. Lucius nodded politely at her. He then took her hand and kissed it lightly, making Hermione blush and Draco feel sick.

"Yes well, I'll be in England for a few more days. I still have to talk to Mr. Potter," Lucius said. "What do you say we meet again for lunch or something Miss Granger?"

"Oh God," Draco thought, his eyes widening, sweat appearing on his brow.

"I'll have to think about it," Hermione said. She was obviously flattered by him and that's exactly what Draco had been afraid of. Lucius was extremely good at walking into people's lives this way. He was a deceiver. His name might as well of been Lucifer.

"Well, I'm staying at the Wizard's Inn," Lucius replied smoothly. "Perhaps you can send me a word there? If you're interested."

"Alright," Hermione said with a small smile. She was never spontaneous like this, but he was handsome and he was an American. He was charming and he didn't seem to be married. He'd conveniently left out the part about talking to Ronald Weasley.

And another advantage he had, was that Weasley and the mudblood were fighting.

"Great," Lucius said, clapping his hands together. "I look forward to hearing from you!" And with that he got up, nodding politely to the two of them and leaving the shop. He had to hold on just a little longer to find out where Draco really stood.

**A/N: Okay here it is! Hope this satisfied your curiosity! If you review I will love you forever:D Anyways, yes…**

XoxoXoxO (Big kiss, little hug, little kiss, little hug, big kiss, little hug, little kiss, big hug!)

**Don't mind me, I'm just a retard. It's just the lack of sleep truthfully, but if I go to sleep too early I feel like an old granny… :( And then I totally lose track of time when I get lost in my writing. Perhaps you know the feeling… **


	10. Draco's Inner Battle

**A/N: Alright. Here it is. It's shorter than most of the chapters but I'm already working on the next. Hope you enjoy it and remember to REVIEW! Thanks so much to those of you who do and have stuck with this story. Looking forward to your opinions.**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

On the way home after seeing his father, Draco was extremely troubled. He watched Hermione who seemed to have forgotten the little meeting that had happened just a couple of hours ago. And Hermione said she'd go out with him again… Well she didn't say it outright but… Well the look on her face said she was thinking about it.

"Granger?" Draco asked slowly. Hermione looked up at him with a silly little grin on her lips. That wasn't a good sign. He rolled his eyes and shifted on the cushiony black seat a little. "Are you going to owl Mr. Llewellyn?"

"He was handsome wasn't he?" she sighed happily. "And he wants to go out again."

"I know Granger, I was there," Draco snapped. Her little grin went away.

"What's the matter Draco?" she asked.

Should he tell her it was his father in Diagon Alley today? Should he say that Lucius was pulling the cloak over Hermione's eyes? It was his father! And although he did feel he owed this to Hermione, his loyalties still lied with his people. He would give anything to be free, but not in a world like this. Perhaps he could make it so she didn't see Lucius Malfoy… no excuse me, Matthias Llewellyn again.

"I didn't trust him," Draco said simply. And that was no lie. "He just seemed…strange to me."

"Really? I thought he was very nice," Hermione replied, looking out the window again.

"Of course you did. HE probably wanted you to," Draco snapped. "Did he show you a license saying he was a journalist?"

Hermione looked at Draco her brow furrowed. "No," she said thoughtfully.

Draco knew he had to play his cards right. If Hermione were anything like what she used to be in school, she'd go out to lunch with his father again out of pure curiosity. And the compulsive need to bring in the bad guy even though that was her job.

"Well, why don't we have a picnic or something instead?" he asked. Even though he'd always disliked Hermione through out most of his life, he had come to find she was actually a very nice silly person. And she was good to him, when anybody else would've thrown him into a dungeon and left him to rot.

"Why are you so keen on stopping me from contacting him again, Malfoy?" she asked suspiciously.

"I told you, Hermione," Draco said. "I didn't like the feeling I got from him."

Perhaps he could do this and have it both ways… Although if his father didn't get a date with Hermione, he was bound to try something else. But at least Draco could hold him off until then. And why was he doing this? Because he needed to give Hermione something. But even if Lucius Malfoy was a heartless bastard, he was still Draco's father and though he'd put Draco through a lot in his life, Draco loved him very much. The idea of him being captured and sold off to someone who was going to mistreat him, made Draco's stomach churn.

"Well perhaps we should look into it then," she said leaning forward. "I thought it was strange that I've never heard his name before."

"He's an American journalist," Draco said.

"Well I guess you're right," she muttered. "He never said he was a big name journalist."

Draco rolled his eyes once more feeling like he should bang his head into the carriage window.

"So what do you say?" he asked. He felt that this would be too easy if Hermione didn't make it a bigger deal.

"I don't know," Hermione sighed, chewing her bottom lip. "I don't get asked on many dates Malfoy. If I knew any better, I'd think you were jealous."

At this Draco's mouth dropped slightly.

"I… What?" he asked.

"You're jealous that another man showed interest in me," Hermione said, her lips pursed.

"Well you are more conceited then I ever thought _you'd_ be," Draco said taken aback. "Look Granger, part of my job as being your slave is to make sure you don't get hurt."

He saw Hermione's eyes soften when that last sentence escaped his lips. He fumbled to find a better way to say it. She was taking this all wrong… But why? She should know the way he worked by now.

"If it's a house elf's rule then you'd think it would be a human slave's rule as well," he added quickly. "House elves are supposed to protect their masters as long as they have a wizard to protect. Even if it means giving up its life to ensure its master lives."

She looked at him expectantly.

"Meaning, it's my job to make sure you aren't a complete air head and go and get yourself killed."

Hermione glared at him.

"Yeah like you're one to talk," Hermione snapped. "If I remember correctly, you chose to become a Death Eater, which in turn got you into this mess in the first place."

"Well then learn from me, Granger!" Draco snarled. "Use your brain and have some common sense. Besides, as I recall, you were quite good at using your brain when we were in school… Except I never thought you _did_ have much common sense, seeing as you nearly got yourself killed on more than one occasion, gallivanting around with Pothead and Weasel. You handed yourself to the Dark Lord several times."

"Yet he could never succeed in killing any of us while we were right in the palm of his hand," Hermione snapped.

"I never said he was _good_ at his job," Draco replied nonchalantly. "That's why he's dead. Because he failed in killing the Boy Who Lived when he was a mere infant, just so Potty could turn around and bite him in the arse several years later."

Hermione huffed.

"Whatever," Draco said finally. "Do what you like. But I think you're being stupid."

"As if I _wanted_ to know what you _think_, Malfoy," Granger spat.

After that the two fell silent.

Draco ran a pale hand down his face and did smack his head against the window. An urgent sensation had appeared in his gut and he didn't know what he should do… Granger was a big girl; she could take care of herself… But if she thought all this was going to be was a date, she was in for a world of hurt.

He found he was battling himself.

Why did he even care? She was just the stupid little muggle from school. She hadn't changed a bit…

But she had taken him in and been extremely kind to him.

…But Lucius Malfoy was his father. He loved his father very much and didn't want to do anything that could potentially hurt him. After all, his mother was gone, and his father was really all he had left.

Yet, Hermione Granger was a good woman, and even though she was an insufferable agitation he didn't really think she deserved to be hurt either.

"Why do you even care?" she asked suddenly breaking him out of his thoughts.

He shrugged.

"I don't," he replied. But inside he wondered if that was the truth…

**A/N: Alright. So sorry it took so long but I've been slightly down lately and haven't really been in the mood to write. But I will not let you down. Anyways. Hope you like it. Will be updating soon. Please be patient with me. **


	11. Kittens and Night Terrors

**A/N: Pffft. Where have all of my reviewers gone? I mean, thank you very much though, to those of you who did review. I loved them all! Anyways on with the story!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

The carriage pulled to a halt and the two wizards clambered out. Draco stretched his fingers towards the sky, making his body elongate as he yawned. He then popped his neck and scratched under his collar.

"Well then," Hermione said, her hands on her hips. "What do you want for dinner?"

"Don't care," Draco muttered, walking off, slightly bad tempered. He went around the house when a loud high-pitched noise filled his ears and something small landed upon his shoulders. He stopped dead, very startled; as he felt small pointy things dig into his skin. He reached around and grasped the little attacker around its mid section and brought it into his view to find a small white kitten clutched in his hand.

"What the hell?" he asked, looking up at the sky, seeing as there was nothing else it could've fallen off of. The mysterious little creature began to scurry wildly in his hand and he squeezed trying to keep a hold of it. "See here, you!" he said, grabbing its small back legs as it hissed at him.

"What's all the commotion here?" Hermione called running to catch up to Draco.

"This… This _thing_," Draco said, his nose wrinkled in disgust as it wriggled in his pale fingers.

"Oh look! You found a kitty!" she cooed, taking the little cotton ball out of his hand and cuddling it. It still thrashed madly; it's shiny gray eyes wide with fear. Draco merely rolled his eyes and made his way towards the cottage.

"If you put it any closer to your face Granger, it'll have a heart attack from the mere shock of how ugly you are," Draco snapped over his shoulder before disappearing around the corner.

Hermione glared at him from under her lion's mane and grumbled something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like, "Immature, ungrateful little shit!" She then followed him into the small cottage to find him lying on her small couch with one of her thicker books in his hand. She let the kitten down and it ran to hide beneath Draco's large hand where it disappeared completely.

"What the-" he began. He lifted his hand to find the snowy white kitten cowering against the material of the red couch. Hermione's interior decoration had a theme of Gryffindor colors. Draco's room had gray, unpainted walls that were blank and formal. When asked, he hadn't wanted to do anything with his room… The nothingness suited him, in Hermione's opinion. He had always been unreadable to her.

"Looks like she likes you," Hermione replied, snatching her book out of his grasp.

"I was going to read that," he said stubbornly.

"Well, too bad. This is the book _I'm_ reading right now. That's why it was on the arm rest," Hermione snapped. She then sat in her cushiony little recliner and put her feet up, slipping off her shoes as she went.

"We're not going to keep this thing are we?" Draco asked, holding the kitten suspended in the air and as far away from his body as he could.

"Why not keep her?" Hermione asked. Draco turned the kitten around and glanced under its tail to check its gender. Yup, girl…

"Because its mother is probably looking for it some where outside and she will be very worried to discover one of her baby's is missing." Draco replied, setting the kitten down, only so it climbed up the couch and into his lap. Hermione giggled.

"What is _wrong_ with this thing?" he asked, plucking it off of his lap again.

"She only wants you because you don't want her," Hermione replied. "Plus, she can probably sense that you need to relax a bit."

Draco made a noise in his throat, his tongue sticking out, and sat up, bringing the kitten with him. He then set the little snowy white puffball in Hermione's lap and went into his room, shutting the door behind him.

The kitten looked up at Hermione defiantly, her big ears back, plastered against her small head, before jumping from her lap and hurrying away to explore the rest of the house.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

That night, Hermione peeked in on Draco to find him asleep on his bed, almost naked, a pillow placed loosely between his legs. From where she stood, she could see the Dark Mark on his left arm. It had faded since the Dark Lord was killed, but it was still there as a constant reminder.

The moonlight gleamed off of his skin and she could see that his body was slowly becoming more muscular. He shifted, and rolled onto his back, before he grunted and turned his face away from her.

How was it someone could look so innocent when they were unconscious, but so evil when they were awake?

For some reason, he looked boyishly young as the moonlight played on his features. And it reminded her of when they were in school. He had only been a child, with the responsibilities of the world set upon his shoulders. No doubt because of his father, but it was clear that Malfoy hadn't been able to handle it.

And now he was here, a prisoner in her home. She didn't think it was right that he had been robbed of opportunities in life he should've been promised to at such a young age. She knew very well that Draco could've been anything he set his mind to. But he was expected to be a Death Eater before he was even brought onto the Earth by his mother, and was doomed the first time Lucius held him in his arms.

She hoped bitterly that Lucius Malfoy was proud, wherever the coward lay that night…

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lucius Malfoy sat next to the window in his fine Wizard's Hotel. Goyle lay on the bed closest to him snoring loudly. The blonde headed man was very troubled at what he saw in Diagon Alley that day. It almost seemed as if his son and the mudblood were…well…_friends_! He shivered with disgust as he remembered Draco plucking food off of Granger's plate as if it were a daily routine.

"What has become of you Draco?" he whispered to the darkness. He wished he could locate his son and take him away from Granger's lair. Who knew what kind of nonsense she was filling his head with? God may know, but Lucius Malfoy did not. He did know, however, that Draco had always been easily influenced. It had never taken much to convince him of anything before.

What if the Granger witch had gotten to him?

Lucius felt obligated to find out the whereabouts of his only child. There was hope for the boy yet… And perhaps one day they could pick up on where their pathetic Dark Lord had left off and take over his duties. One thing was for sure. Lucius Malfoy _never_ gave up. Seeing as everything had been taken from him, he was determined to get it back. Using _every_ means necessary.

Oh yes, the world of muggle borns and half-breeds would end with a loud bang. If they wanted to be recognized for what they really were, Lucius would give them the credit they always deserved. He found he was grasping the arm of his chair hard, his knuckles turning white.

"It will be for you Cissy," he whispered. "And the girls, and Draco."

At this, he'd begun to devise plans. There was still a good amount of Death Eaters out there who hadn't been captured. He knew for a fact that a lot of them were still roaming around free, out in the open just as he was. He would track them down and see what they thought about a comeback.

It seemed old habits died hard when it came to the oldest living Malfoy. But he was one of the most powerful dark wizards left on this Earth and as long as he was in a position to do something, he would do all he could to strike fear back into people's hearts.

When he'd heard that man that owned the milk shop had disrespected _his_ son, a _Malfoy_, and a pureblood? Oh, Lucius had felt his whole world blacken. Yes indeed, they had forgotten their places. And as long as he was still free… He would bring them all back down to Earth.

A cold sneer curled across his features as he slowly morphed back into Matthias Llewellyn, his eyes turning green, the moonlight reflected in them. It was a done deed… The wizarding community had officially gotten Lucius Malfoy extremely pissed off.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_The sky had clouded over from all of the smoke the different spells had caused as their essence entered the sky. Men were screaming and dying all around him. Draco could hear blood pounding in his ears as he dodged spell after spell. He tripped and found himself face to face with one of his fellow Death Eaters. From the looks of him, he'd been dead a long time. Horrified, Draco jumped to his feet only to find a wand in his face, held by none other than Ron Weasley. _

_Ronald, the boy who'd never really done anything **horrible** to Draco. Up until now, they'd been pretty neutral when it came to each other's existence. Only throwing insults at each other when they came face to face. _

_Draco wiped the sweat from his eyes and waited for his fate to be delivered. Only when he looked into Ron's eyes, he didn't see satisfaction there… No only sadness lingered in the Weasel's eyes. Sadness that things couldn't be different._

_It was then that Draco saw him. His Uncle Lestrange creeping up behind Ron, his eyes crazy and unfocused. It seemed time stopped for Draco as his mind battled. The Dark Lord was already dead, and Draco's purpose on this battlefield shot to hell. When he thought about it, he couldn't remember what had made him want to join Voldemort in the first place. _

"_Avada Kedavra!" he screamed, a jet of green escaping his wand, hitting his Uncle square in the chest. Ron turned around in shock, seeing the dead Death Eater lying sprawled behind him. When he looked back, Draco had his wand pointed in Ron's face, an evil smirk playing on his features. _

"_I never-"_

"-liked him much anyway," Draco said in his sleep. Sweat soaked the sheet below him and he suddenly woke up, his gray eyes wide. The war flashes had been coming and going ever since the real fighting had ended. He remembered that night. He hadn't killed Ron for reasons even unknown to himself. He just couldn't do it. It was like killing one of his childhood adversaries would be killing a part of himself. When he thought about it, he didn't want to see Ronald Weasley's corpse before him. It brought him no satisfaction at all.

That was around the time he realized how horribly bad things had gotten. But he supposed that's why Ronald Weasley hadn't killed him either. It was like having to stand up and become an adult. Really look at things for what they were and stop sugarcoating everything. This was _not_ a childish spat going on in the halls of Hogwarts School. This was real… life or death.

And it was then, that the two of them went there separate ways, never looking back. That was a week before the war ended. Draco never saw Ron again, until he stood in Hermione's kitchen.

Draco wiped the remaining sweat off of his face and rubbed his eyes. He was really tiring of these night terrors. He laid back down, on his back staring out of his window. He hoped he never had to visit that old battlefield again…

**A/N: Thank you to all of my reviewers. Hope you liked the chapter. Make sure to review people! I will love you forever, and update quicker! See I'm bribing you, he he. Anyways. Thanks for taking the time. xoxo**


	12. That Guy's Married!

**A/N: Here is my newest chapter. I also have a new fanfic out for those of you who are interested. It's called A Dangerous Infatuation. It is a HG/DM pairing for those of you looking for something like that. Anyways. Here we go! Thank you to all of my great and faithful reviewers! Muwah! X**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

"What are you looking at?" Draco asked sharply. His eyes fell upon the small white kitten that was watching him with immense interest. The little white kitten stared up at him with big gray eyes, whereas Draco stared back with cold gray ones a tinge darker than the kitten's.

"Meow," the kitten purred up at him. He rolled his eyes.

"Easy for you to say," Draco snapped.

"Who are you talking to?" Hermione asked coming into the small kitchen drying her long wavy hair with a fluffy white towel.

"Just the snowy nuisance down there," he muttered, pointing to the puffball that was rolling around on the floor batting at the hem of Draco's robes. Draco tired of this game quickly and grabbed the kitten around its middle, bringing it up to eye level with him.

"Quit it," he growled. The kitten began to purr loudly and it nudged Draco's nose affectionately.

"Why can't you just be nice to her?" Hermione asked.

"Because I am the all-powerful evil Draco Malfoy. I hate all furry cuddly creatures and the color pink," Draco said dramatically. Hermione giggled and sat down across from him. The little kitten scampered across the table to Hermione and snatched a piece of ham out of her sandwich then hopped off landing on the floor, to eat it under Draco's chair.

"I swear that kitten has it out for me," Hermione said thoughtfully. "She won't let me touch her but she'll steal most of the ham in my sandwich."

"My kind of cuddly creature then," Draco said. "I've always liked animals that can make off with the meat of a muggleborn's sandwich."

Hermione scowled at him. "Did you make these?" she asked opening one of the left over sandwiches and grabbing some more ham.

"Yes," Draco muttered. "Although I wasn't quite sure if I should put any of that weird smelling yellow stuff on them…Then you have that creamy white stuff in there too. I didn't know if those were meant for sandwiches."

"Mayonnaise and mustard? You can put them on a sandwich if you like," Hermione said through a mouthful of bread and ham. "Because this is sort of dry."

"Yes well, I've never been much of a cook," Draco sighed.

"Speaking of food," Hermione said carefully. "I owled Matthias Llewellyn this morning and I decided to go on that date with him. He replied and told me that he wanted to take me to dinner tonight."

"That's nice," Draco said dully. He then got up and put his plate in the sink. "Hope that works out well for you."

"Well I think it will be a welcome change," Hermione said stubbornly. She never would've thought in a million years that she'd be sitting here in her kitchen arguing with her childhood nemesis about her love life.

"I don't know about welcome," Draco muttered. "But it will be a change you weren't expecting."

"What are you bitching about?" Hermione asked.

"Bitching? Me? Never!" Draco said. He then entered his room, his snowy nuisance frolicking after him. "As for me, I'm going to work on the house…you bitch," he added under his breath.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ron entered through the gates in front of Hermione's home. He heard a lot of banging and crashing. Suddenly Draco immerged on the porch of Hermione's run down mansion, holding a sledgehammer.

**The next scene now proceeds in slow motion with sexy man music playing in the background:**

Draco came down the steps of the mansion, wiping the sweat from his brow. He then flicked his head from side to side, his blonde hair catching the sunshine as it flew in the air away from his face. He then pushed his golden locks away from his forehead, took off his shirt and used it to wipe the sweat away from his pale muscular body, his muscles rippling, and glistening. He picks up a bucket filled with water and lifts it above his head, letting it pour on him like a waterfall.

He then flexes and cracks his sore joints, giving out a manly grunt just as he notices Ronald Weasley staring at him with is mouth ajar.

**Slow motion ends…Draco's sexy moment is over. Sexy man music comes to an abrupt stop.**

"Are you a voyeur or something?" Draco snapped. "Standing there watching me take my clothes off in that creepy secretive way."

"Well not many people _I_ know are indecent enough to strip in broad daylight when someone can see," Ron said defensively.

"Are you uncomfortable because you have homosexual tendencies?" Draco asked smirking evilly. "And I shouldn't have to be decent seeing as we're located out in the middle of nowhere."

"Whatever," Ron snapped. "Is Mione around?"

"She's in the house around the back," Draco said picking up his sledgehammer again. "Anyways, I've got to get back to work in there, and I'm sure you can find it on your own."

Without another word Ron walked off hurriedly to go find his best friend.

"Homosexual tendencies," Ron fumed. He knocked on the door of Hermione's little house and she came to the door with a cordless flat iron in her hand. Her hair was half straight and half curly.

"Ron!" she said happily. "To what do I owe this surprise visit?"

"A hug and a kiss would be nice," he said with a sheepish smile. She giggled and did what he asked for, and when she went to kiss his cheek he moved sharply and captured her mouth with his lips. Her eyes widened in surprise and her cheeks flushed. When he broke away she found herself very confused as to what had just happened.

Draco came around the corner, his sledgehammer thrown over his shoulder.

"I decided I-" but he paused when he noticed the close proximity in which the two were standing, their mouths only an inch away from each other's. "Whoops… Didn't mean to interrupt," Draco said, his nostrils flared slightly, a disturbed expression gracing his sharp features. He had the little kitten perched on his shoulder as he turned and walked away quickly.

"Meow," the kitten squeaked in his ears.

"I know Snowflake," he said patting the small kitten's behind. "It's okay. Just look away."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

An hour later Ron appeared and he was walking towards the gate.

"You know that she's getting ready to go on a date right?" Draco drawled from the porch steps on which he sat. He was sipping a butterbeer.

Ron paused sharply.

"What?" he asked turning towards Draco.

"Yeah, that's why she was straightening her hair. Didn't she tell you?" he said, a malicious grin appearing on his face.

"Draco!" came a shrill cry from Hermione. "I can't believe you told him that!"

"Well gosh Granger," Draco said, his cold gray eyes widening innocently. "You'd think you would've already said something about it, wouldn't you? Seeing as he _is_ your best _friend_ and all."

Hermione's eyes narrowed to slits and her face reddened.

"You," she growled threateningly, pointing at Draco.

"You're going on a _date_?" Ron snarled.

"Bye!" Draco said his eyes filled with malevolent humor. He headed towards the porch steps.

"Oh no you don't!" Hermione screeched, hurrying towards Draco. With that he turned and hauled ass into the house, slamming the old wooden door behind him seeing as he'd planted the seed of chaos. Now he was going to get the hell out before it sprouted into something ugly.

Hermione let out a frustrated groan and turned to face Ron.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I don't know, what do you think?" Draco asked Snowflake from behind the closed door. "Perhaps I shouldn't have done that to her…"

Snowflake looked at him innocently and let out a small meow.

"Yes, I thought it was hilarious too! I'm glad you approve of such obscene behavior." Draco said, scooping the kitten up and waltzing out of the room.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"We're not in a relationship Ronald!" she yelled.

"Well if you don't feel anything for me then why did you let me kiss you?" he snarled.

"You caught me off guard! What was I supposed to do? Bite your tongue?" Hermione screamed.

"So who is he then?" Ron asked.

"That's none of your business," Hermione snapped, crossing her arms against her breasts.

"Tell me, Mione, at least you could do that," Ron said.

"I don't owe you anything," Hermione said although she was no longer yelling.

"Please. I just want to know. It isn't Malfoy is it?" he asked, his eyes wide with worry.

Hermione looked at him as though she would rip his heart out and feed it to him. She then screeched, picked up a hoe and threw it at him. Of course it didn't make it across the yard but he tried to dodge anyway.

"No! You'd think you'd at least give me more credit than that!" she bellowed.

"Hey!" came Draco's voice from inside the house. She turned, her straight hair falling into her face, red from being infuriated. Draco was standing in front of the living room window.

She then picked up a large rock and heaved it at the window. He ducked out of the way.

"I don't want to hear anything out of you for quite awhile!" she screeched. She then turned to Ron again. "For your information his name is Matthias Llewellyn and he's an-"

"The American journalist?" Ron snapped. "That guy's married!"

"What?" Hermione asked.

**A/N: YAAAAAAAY! Here is your chapter. Sorry it took me so long. My mind was stripped of a good way to write this chapter. Thank you to my friend for helping me come up with ideas. I love her. :D Review. I'm hoping to reach 140. Pfft yeah right. :D reviews please! Love you all. **


	13. On a Date With Lucius Malfoy

**A/N: I know you guys are probably going to want to throw stones at me when you read this seeing as Hermione goes on that date but I had to! Anyways, thank you to all of my wonderful reviewers. I reached my goal of 135 reviews so I'm updating… As for my goal this time… I've decided to make it 145. It's reasonable! If you beat that I'll be ecstatic! Chocolate flavored kisses for all who review...Unless you think chocolate is gross!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Draco stood in the doorway of Hermione's room, eating a green apple. She was putting up her hair and applying makeup.

"I can't believe you're still going to go after what Weasel B told you," Draco muttered, slightly bad tempered. He didn't know why the fact that she was going on this date bothered him so much, but he was still determined to try and stop her.

"Ron may have been lying," Hermione said. "And if he wasn't, at least I have an excuse to throw a drink in that jerk's face."

"I think you're being stupid," Draco said. "Besides, I hope you realize you have to take me with you." Yes, it was true. Draco had just gotten a grand idea.

"I most certainly do not!" Hermione said.

"Yes you do," Draco replied with a smug smirk. "This collar I'm wearing makes it so I can't be anywhere without you. And it's wizard slave law that I have to keep it on at all times. You break the law every time you take it off for me, so I can shower."

Hermione hadn't thought that far. But it was true… She let out a deep breath, her cheeks inflating with air.

"Then at least I could be your body guard," Draco said. "So that I can come gnaw on this guy's leg if he gets too _touchy_…"

"A bit animalistic yes?" Hermione said with a small smile.

"It's this bloody collar," Draco said, tugging on it. "And the spikes make me act like a vicious dog."

"Perhaps I should remove the spikes," Hermione said holding up her wand threateningly.

"No!" Draco said horrified. "I like the spikes."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Go get dressed," she muttered. "Can't have you running around in dirty smelly clothes."

"It's man essence!" Draco said. He then disappeared from the doorway, just as she threw her lipstick at him.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Do you hear that Snowflake?" he asked his little white kitten who was sitting on top of his dresser grooming herself. "I get to go out on the town tonight!"

"Meow?" the kitten asked looking interested.

"Yes," Draco said. "But I can't bring you. You'll attract too much attention."

The kitten put her ears back, and continued licking herself. Draco quickly changed into his casuals and went to wait in the living room. Hermione came out looking quite beautiful.

"Well you clean up well," Draco muttered.

"And that's the closest to a compliment that I'll ever get from you isn't it?" Hermione said, kicking him in the shin with her high heel. He smirked at her, seeing as she hadn't kicked him hard enough for it to hurt.

The two of them exited the house, and entered Hermione's carriage. Draco opened the door for her and she climbed inside, lighting a small orb that hovered near the center of the carriages top. Draco entered in after her and the carriage set off into town.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They arrived shortly later, and Draco was stunned at the timeframe it took.

"How is it that we arrived here in twenty minutes, whereas last time it took us a couple of hours?" Draco asked.

"Because we took the enchanted carriage," Hermione replied. "It goes a lot faster than the other one because it's pulled by magic, whereas the other one is pulled by magical creatures."

"Well then why didn't you pick me up in this one, when you bought me from the slave shop?" Draco asked.

"Because this one was under repair," Hermione replied. "Ronald wrecked it."

"I see," Draco said.

"Now. There are some rules for tonight," Hermione said sternly.

"Oh please don't do that Granger," Draco said, his brow furrowed. "Rules are meant to be broken."

"Not these ones," said Hermione.

"One, you are to keep your distance from the table. Two, you are to behave yourself and stay in the restaurant so that it's easy to find you after the evening's over," Hermione said. "They're _simple_ and they should be easy to follow."

"Right," Draco said rolling his eyes. "Don't forget Granger, he's married!" Draco hissed in her ear.

"Innocent until proven guilty," Hermione said stubbornly. "I think Ronald was just having one of his jealous fits. And if he is married, then I shall enjoy the evening anyway."

"Geese Granger, are you that desperate to go out on a date?" Draco asked. "Because if that's the case then hell, _I'll_ take you out."

Hermione slapped his arm.

"There he is," she said nervously. "Here I go."

Draco sat down in the seating area and sighed.

"How do I pass the time?" he mumbled to himself. He saw a stack of paper fliers on the table next to them. They were a month old so he shrugged and picked one up.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lucius noticed his son right away and he felt a slow joy creep into his icy heart. He almost got up to go greet them but then decided it would be better to show as little interest in Draco as possible. Hermione made her way over to him and he had to admit, the mudblood cleaned up well. He stood up and pulled her chair out for her and she sat down.

"Thank you," Hermione said.

"There's no need," Matthias replied.

"So, I heard that you talked to Ronald Weasley," Hermione said. Lucius paused for a moment.

"Yes I did," he said with a small smile. "You know him?"

"He's my best friend," Hermione said. "He told me something very interesting about you."

"Really and what is that?" Matthias asked keeping his cool.

"He told me that you're married," Hermione said bluntly. Lucius paused for a moment. Damn it! He'd forgotten he'd told the Weasley that.

"Right," Matthias said. "I _was_ married," he replied. "But my wife was killed in a car accident a few years ago…" he paused for a dramatic affect, all the while thinking of Narcissa, making his look of sorrow real. "He saw the tattoo I have here," Matthias said lifting his sleeve to reveal the small sun. She read the names Linda and Grace.

"Well I'm sorry Mr. Llewellyn," Hermione said genuinely. "Which one is your wife?"

"Linda," Matthias said. "Grace is my daughter."

"Really?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, she's six. Right now she's staying at my mother's house back in the United States seeing as I couldn't bring her on this business trip," Lucius lied.

The two of them ordered their food and Draco sat looking around absently twiddling his thumbs a pile of origami around him. He had folded all of the old pieces of paper into swans with little moving wings.

"So I see you've brought your slave along with you?" Matthias asked.

"I don't really like to call him that," Hermione said with a smile. "I look at him as more of a hired hand. I couldn't leave him at the house," Hermione went on. "Wizarding law says he has to be around me at all times."

"Is he going to eat anything?" Matthias asked.

"I don't know," Hermione said thoughtfully. "I didn't ask him if he wanted to get anything. Excuse me for a moment."

She then appeared in front of Draco.

"Are you hungry?" she asked him. Draco looked up surprised.

"Wow," he said, his gray eyes wide. "I didn't know you cared."

"Well? Are you?" she snapped.

"Yes, Granger, I'm starving," Draco replied. "As a matter of fact, I'm feeling faint… I believe I may be wasting away as we speak!"

"Stop being overly dramatic," she snapped at him. He snickered.

"No, I'm doing just fine," Draco replied. "How's the date going?"

"Truthfully?" Hermione asked.

"Yes," Draco said his eyebrows raised.

"I think he's too old for me," she said.

"And what about him being married?" Draco said, curious to see what his father came up with.

"His wife died in car accident," Hermione said.

"Ah," Draco said. "Tragic."

"Quite," Hermione muttered. "Do you want to come sit down with us?"

At this Draco looked extremely interested.

"I suppose so," he said. "Are you looking for an easy way out?"

**A/N: Hello. This is all I had time for sadly. But I didn't want to keep all of my lovely reviewers waiting so here it is. I will continue this soon. Love to all!**


	14. When Draco Joins the Table

**A/N: Wow! You guys are GREAT! Thank you for all of the wonderful reviews. But what's with the one to five words? I love your feedback and opinions! Anyway, on to where we left off last chapter.**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Draco sat at the table with a stuffed chicken platter in front of him. He ate slowly as he listened to Hermione and his father converse of trivial things, or to put it quite frankly, things that bored him to death. He found himself wondering if this was how the legendary romance goon, Lucius Malfoy, caught his mother. He hoped not, or else his mother certainly did have low expectations when she was a girl. Perhaps she was obese with low self-esteem?

Draco smirked evilly at his baked potato as he applied all the seasonings to it, such as green onion, bacon bits, cheese, sour cream, and butter. He then returned back to eating his stuffed chicken, as Lucius gave him a disgusted look.

"Draco, use your silverware!" Hermione snapped. Draco put down his stuffed chicken breast and wiped his fingers on his robes. At this, both Hermione and his father looked quite disturbed. He then picked up his utensils as though they would break between his fingers and began to cut into the chicken breast. He knew he was driving his father crazy with his dastardly table manners.

Hermione rolled her eyes and returned her attention to Lucius.

"What were you saying Mr. Llewellyn?" she asked with a smile.

"Please, Hermione, call me Matthias," Lucius said, reaching across the table and squeezing Hermione's hand. She smiled, blushing a little, before drawing her hand back and placing it in her lap. Lucius looked slightly put off by this, but he tried not to let it show.

"What were you saying Matthias?" she asked, the candlelight glimmering in her deep brown eyes.

Lucius smiled slowly at her, all the while marveling at this dainty little creature. She was so unreadable that it terrified him. Him! Of all people! It was hard to tell if she was actually falling for his elaborate masquerade, Matthias Llewellyn, or if she was just covering for being completely bored. Lucius was an old fashioned man. He didn't know what the rules of dating were, in this new generation.

"Do you really want to hear more about my wife?" he asked, his eyebrows raised.

"Yes, I think she's very interesting," Hermione replied. It seemed Draco was coming into the conversation for the first time this evening. He perked up immediately and stared at his father expectantly.

"My wife, Linda, was a very special woman," he replied. "When we first met, we went to school together. She was smart, sassy, and not to mention, she didn't want a thing to do with me." Lucius chuckled and Hermione giggled. She'd always loved these types of stories. She used to make her mother tell her how she, and Mr. Granger met and fell in love, over and over again. "Of course, it's the ones that ignore you completely that you want to go after… Remember that Mr. Malfoy," he told his son. "Because then you have to work for her. And in the end, your work will pay off and bring you huge rewards in life.

"Anyway. She was a tall, blonde headed woman. Very beautiful and of course, she excelled in everything she did, if a book was included. She was complete rubbish at Quidditch," Lucius went on. "She used to fall off of my broom all the time. Slip right off the end! She broke her tailbone on one occasion."

Draco chuckled, picturing his mother trying to ride a broom.

"Of course it was very painful, but it healed quickly with the help of our school healer," Lucius said. A dreamy look came over him for a moment, and he seemed a bit sad. "I do miss her most days."

"I know this is very inappropriate," Hermione began apologetically. "But I really need to go to the woman's lavatory!"

"Oh, please, be my guest, Miss Granger," Lucius said politely. Hermione jumped up and hurried away.

"Why didn't you ever tell me about mum?" Draco inquired.

"You never asked," Lucius said. "But enough about me. Let's talk about you!"

All kindness disappeared from Draco's father as he peered at his son, disdainfully.

"What is going on between you and the mudblood?" Lucius snapped. His eyes suddenly turned gray, and penetrated deep inside Draco's mind. Draco let him dig around a bit, seeing as there was nothing he needed to hide. Truthfully, although he did feel indebted to Hermione, he had no real feelings for her. At least not romantically.

"Father don't be ridiculous," Draco murmured. Lucius withdrew himself from Draco's thoughts, being satisfied with what he found.

"I should say you put on quite a show, but I'm quite ashamed that you are grateful to be serving this mudblood," Lucius whispered venomously. "The world is not as bad as you seem to think it is."

"Yeah not so bad for _you_," Draco snapped. "You can change your appearance and dart around being someone your not! But me, I'm _stuck_ in my skin!"

"You're a wimp," Lucius snapped. "But don't worry. I've come up with a plan to get you out of her grasp."

"Right," Draco rolled his eyes. "And what is it?"

"Get her to take off your collar," he said. Honestly, he'd just come up with this plan two seconds ago, after rummaging around in Draco's memories. "Seeing as she lets you put it back on yourself, just wait to shower right before she goes to bed. Then come to me…"

Draco raised his eyebrows. Lucius had dug deep in such little time. Hermione had Death Eater wards up all around her house. Lucius couldn't even penetrate the walls, seeing as he was one of Voldemort's men. She had adjusted it for Draco Malfoy, and Draco Malfoy alone. He was the only one that could get past the ward without setting it off. And seeing as she always made him wear his collar, except for showers, he couldn't leave the ward unless she herself was leaving with him. It was a nice little set up, but if Draco manipulated Hermione into taking his collar off he'd feel…well… _guilty_.

And his father was worrying him. What exactly was he planning to do? More and more so lately, Draco had been leaning away from his father's ways. He knew that it did have a bit to do with Hermione's influence. She'd shown him a different life style, that didn't include saying:

"Yes master, anything you want."

Draco had always hated taking orders in that manner. He sighed, and returned to his food.

"I don't know father," Draco said. "Why don't you put up your sword?"

"What do you mean?" Lucius asked. He shut his eyes for a full minute and when he opened them, they were green again.

"Why don't you let go of all this nonsense? Go on with your life…let go of your prejudices. In the end it got you nowhere. And it got mother killed. You can escape and live your life as a free man! And it's not horrible having to live with Granger," Draco said cautiously. "She's made it easier for me."

Lucius looked livid, as Draco had never seen before.

"Let go?" he growled, very slowly.

"Father, if you haven't noticed yet, we _lost_! Our cause was pointless by the end of the war. Why hold on to something that wasn't ever meant to be?" Draco asked.

"Sorry that took so long!" Hermione said sitting back down. "There was a really long line!"

Lucius put on his fake smile and nodded politely.

"No problem at all Hermione," he said. Draco was looking at him worriedly. "But I daresay, I should be getting back to the hotel. I feel slightly ill."

"Oh no!" Hermione said. "What's wrong?"

"My stomach is slightly…er…upset," Lucius muttered. "I'll be off. Thank you for a wonderful evening." He then kissed Hermione's hand, got up and hurried from the restaurant.

Draco stared after him, his brow furrowed.

"Poor thing," Hermione said after a moment. "I hope he feels better."

"I'm sure he will," Draco muttered.

**A/N: Alright. Here you are. Hoped you enjoyed it. You know the drill. Leave me a review, please! Love your opinions. :D**


	15. Snowflake's Mystery

**A/N: Gosh! So sorry it took me so long. I've been freakishly busy these past few days and I finally got around to writing a chapter. Sorry, it's a bit shorter than the other ones but I should have more time to write in this next week, so don't fret. Anyways, leave me a review. And PLEASE PEOPLE! Make them a bit longer. I really want to know what you think about the story. Yes it's great that you like it, but I want your feedback!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Draco looked in the mirror, his face slightly tinged from the steam in the shower. He held his collar in his pale fingers, his hair slicked back against his head. Hermione had long since gone to bed, and he'd been standing here quietly for a half an hour, trying to figure out what it was he meant to do.

"You're free now!" his mind screamed at him. "Go while she's asleep!" He put the collar down on sink and pulled his robes on. But somehow this didn't feel right. He supposed it was hard to gain Hermione's trust in the first place. But to lose it? Wouldn't that just be total hell in a hand basket?

He exited the bathroom and stood still in the hallway for a bit, looking in on Hermione to make sure she was still asleep. Snowflake laid by Granger's head, her eyes shut slightly as though she were dozing, but Draco didn't know the kitten was fully aware he was there.

She watched him with her gray eyes narrowed, her ears back complacently.

Draco caught his pet's eyes and felt a chill go down his spine as she stared at him in the dark.

"What are you looking at me like that for?" he whispered. The small cat hopped down from the bed and came up to him, sitting in front of him sternly. "Oh stop it. It's not as if she'll miss me anyway," he snapped, bending down to pluck Snowflake off of her little fuzzy white behind. The cat sighed, staring down at him. He then set her on his shoulder and crept to the front door.

When he reached for the handle she sunk her claws into the flesh of his shoulder and he hissed a sharp intake of breath.

"What's the matter with you tonight?" Draco snapped. The cat's ears went back again and a small growl escaped her throat. He sighed.

"You don't want me to go do you?" he asked. The kitten gave him a look that said simply: "Well, isn't it obvious?"

He then opened the door and headed outside, walking along side the massive house he was currently remodeling. He then lay in the grass that was outside of his window, with the kitten sitting patiently beside him.

"You know," Draco murmured, more to himself then anyone else. "I can't help but feel like I know you from somewhere."

The kitten watched him through gray-blue eyes.

"You're so familiar, yet I can't place you at all," Draco replied, now looking at Snowflake who was stocking a bug in the grass. "You sort of remind me of my mother I guess. I don't know why."

The kitten suddenly perked up in the green grass, letting a low growl escape her. She was looking deeply into the trees.

"What is it?" Draco asked sitting up and looking in the direction of Snowflake.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the darkness, Lucius Malfoy sat, just outside the boundaries of Hermione's Death Eater ward. His eyes widened when he saw the little white cat looking straight at him in the still of the night. The cat bounded towards him and he immediately disappeared with a soft pop.

Snowflake froze, her ears back, pointed towards her tail. Had she just seen who she thought she'd seen? Could it be so? She suddenly felt a muscular and calloused hand wrap around her middle and pick her up. She was spun around so that her small face was put right in front of Draco's.

"What was it?" he asked. Snowflake just looked at him and began to purr when he held her against his chest. "Must have been an animal or something," he murmured to himself. He then entered the cottage and set Snowflake down on the table, to find Hermione standing in the doorway of the kitchen, holding a glass of water.

"What were you doing outside?" she asked with a frown. She still seemed to be half asleep, not really noticing the big details. Such as, Draco wasn't wearing his collar. Draco was still dressed in his robes.

"I thought I'd get a bit of fresh air," Draco replied with a smile. He then slipped off the outer layer of his robes and began to slip off his under shirt. Hermione quickly looked away.

"Why are you undressing in the kitchen?" she asked.

"I don't know," Draco shrugged. He threw his over robes around his shoulders, in hopes of shielding his neck from her. "It just seemed like the thing to do at the time."

"Well stop it," Hermione snapped. "Go to your room and do it."

"Right-o captain!" Draco said. And with that he hurriedly passed her and made his way to the bathroom, to find his collar there, where he'd left it. He quickly slipped it back on and hurried away down the hall into his small, plain bedroom.

He then laid down on his bed, letting out a huge sigh. What had he been thinking? He could've gone! But where would he have gone? To his father? The man who was partly responsible for all that had happened to Draco in the last few years? He found he had no desire to bring the Death Eaters back into light. He wanted them to stay hidden and gone from his life where they belonged forever.

He sighed and slipped his black muscle shirt off, lying down on his cool gray sheets. Besides, in his opinion, he had it pretty damn good right now. Truthfully, this had been the happiest he'd ever been in a long time. Why should he want to get rid of that feeling, just to stay loyal to his father? He owed nothing to a man who put his, Draco's, life in danger countless times before. He owed nothing to the man who was responsible for his mother's death. If anyone was to be blamed for the fall of the Malfoy Empire, it was his father, Lucius.

The last time he'd seen his mother, she had been pregnant with his twin sisters, although she wasn't showing yet. That was the day Draco and Lucius decided it was best to keep their distance from Narcissa Malfoy. It had been a sad, awful day for Draco, for he knew he might never see his mother again. But for different reasons. He'd always thought that it was he who would die on the battlefield. But it had been Narcissa who'd gone before him. And for some reason, that just wasn't right.

After the untimely death of Narcissa Malfoy, Draco had become bitter and resentful of his father. And that feeling had never gone away.

His eyes began to flicker shut, and slowly they stayed closed for longer amounts of time. And after a long while, they didn't open again. That night, Draco dreamt something strange…

_A young blonde woman was standing in a deserted classroom. She was sitting at a dusty, old, and rickety desk reading a book. Something was very familiar about this woman and Draco strived to see her up close, but he couldn't move any further. Then quite suddenly the young woman closed her eyes as if in deep concentration, and she lifted her head. This was when Draco recognized her as his mother. She began to change, sprouting fur all over her body, long whiskers growing out of her face, which was taking on the form of a feline…_

And his mind went blank as someone was shaking him awake. Hermione stood over him, and he saw it was still dark.

"What?" he snapped, propping himself up on his elbows.

"You woke me up," Hermione said, looking worriedly at him. "And the kitten's doing something weird."

"What are you talking about?" Draco asked sitting up. "What do you mean I woke you up?"

Hermione paused for a moment.

"Well," she began cautiously. "You were calling out for your mother…"

Draco's face turned a deep red and he looked away from her.

"And with all of your bellowing, Snowflake came to wake me up," Hermione said. "Except when she was meowing, it sounded like she was trying to call me a mudblood…"

Draco laughed.

"Don't be ridiculous Granger," Draco drawled, lying back down, his head propped on his arms.

"Well how do you explain this then?" Hermione snapped, pulling down her nightshirt. There were two neat scratches there that looked suspiciously like an "N" and an "M."

Draco's mind wandered back to his dream, although he didn't know what it meant. And suddenly he looked over, and his eyes fell on Snowflake, who was sitting in his doorway, with her ears back, looking slightly agitated.

"Good Lord," he whispered.

**A/N: Mkay. Well. Interesting little chapter. Hope you liked it. **


	16. Narcissa's Stuck

**A/N: Hey people! Thanks so much for the great reviews! I loved them all! Anyways, here's the next chapter to my story, hope you enjoy it! Love to all!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Lucius Malfoy paced the floor of his small hotel. He took the black ribbon out of his hair that had been tying it back and threw it on the chair beside him. Goyle watched him with immense interest.

"It was her Gregory," he said after a short pause.

"It was Narcissa?" Goyle asked, propping himself up on his elbow.

"Yes," Lucius said quietly. He finally gave way and sat in the high backed chair, his black ribbon disappearing beneath him. He took off his shoes and socks and placed his feet on the small footrest in front of him. "Come Gregory, rub my feet."

Goyle took a good long look at Lucius and he cringed slightly, at the thought of rubbing the man's feet. They were big and white and… Well… He couldn't smell any sort of fowl odor coming off of them, but they looked like they'd smell bad… Even though he knew Lucius Malfoy was too clean for such a thing. He sat down in front of his best friend's father and placed his calloused hands on Lucius' right foot. It was warm and a little sweaty but not as bad as he thought it would be. He slowly massaged them and Lucius let out a groan.

"I walked here," Lucius replied after a moment. "I needed a chance to think."

"But sir," Goyle muttered. "How do you know it was her?"

"Have you ever been in love Gregory?" Lucius asked after a moment. Goyle shook his head. "Well, if you ever do…and you become separated from your mate, when you finally catch a glimpse of them after all of these years, you'll just…know."

"What of your unborn children?" Goyle asked. Lucius started and looked down at Goyle as if he'd just remembered he was going to be a father for the second time in his life.

"Linda and Grace!" he whispered. "Why of course! She wasn't pregnant any more. Where are the girls?"

"That's what I was asking," Goyle said. Lucius sat up, placing his bare feet on the ground.

"I must talk to her," Lucius murmured, his eyes wide as though he'd gone mad. "I must find out what happened to our babies! Surely she must know!"

"You weren't able to attend her funeral were you?" Goyle asked. "You never got any real-"

"Indication that she'd actually passed away!" Lucius finished for him. He got up and began to put his shoes on again.

"Mr. Malfoy?" Gregory asked. "What are you doing?"

"I must go see her!" Lucius declared, grabbing his cloak.

"What are you going to do? It's nearly daybreak!" Goyle said, standing up. "You can't! And you said it yourself! The Granger mudblood has wards up all around her home. There's no possible way you can get in!"

But there was no convincing him. Lucius was crazed with his new realization.

"Why didn't she come to me if she were still alive?" Lucius asked. "Why did she go to our son?"

"Perhaps she couldn't find you," Goyle murmured. "Mr. Malfoy, you need to rest. You've been out all night already. Why don't you wait? If she is with Draco she's not going anywhere. And the walls are thin! You've probably already disturbed the people in the next room!"

Lucius paused, slightly short of breath, staring vacantly at Goyle. After a moment, his features regained their animation. Something had finally clicked back into place and he sat down on his bed, suddenly looking very tired.

"Besides," Lucius said quietly. "A realization such as this needs time and planning. I have to think this through."

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy," Goyle said in a voice that was nearly a whisper. "You do."

"I'm tired Gregory," Lucius said. He began to undress again. "We shall talk more of this in the morning."

"Whatever you say, Mr. Malfoy," Goyle said, lying back down. But he didn't go to sleep. Not until he heard Lucius' breathing pattern change into that of a person who is in a deep rest. For some reason, Goyle didn't think Narcissa meant Lucius to find her. If she did, she would have come for him, after or during the war. There was something that didn't quite add up, and though Goyle couldn't do much about it, he was set on finding out what was going on.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The newly discovered Narcissa, sat stubbornly, with her cat ears back, staring at Hermione and Draco, who'd refused to go back to bed. Of course she hadn't expected them to. After all, she'd given them both quite a shock. Hermione held her wand to Narcissa's small feline chest, her jaw set.

"Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione said patiently. "I'm going to ask you again to reveal yourself."

Narcissa looked at her coolly. And what was she going to do if Narcissa refused? There was no such spell that could force an Animagus to show their true form. Narcissa hissed at Hermione.

"She is the little firecracker isn't she?" Hermione asked, leaning back into her cushions, letting out a sigh. "I give up. We've been sitting here for three hours."

Draco looked at the approaching dawn.

"Mother. Why won't you just do what she says?" Draco asked. Narcissa turned her head ever so slightly to her son, not looking directly at him, her ears poised in his direction, to show she was listening. "What's the big deal? And why are you giving us so much trouble?"

The truth was, Narcissa had been trying to transform back into herself for some time. Yet, she'd been in this feline form for so long, her body had weakened with her poor diet. She was just too proud to admit it. She tried again, provoking the change within her, but nothing happened. She let out a small grunt and turned away from both of them.

"What's the matter mother?" Draco asked. Even though Narcissa wasn't herself, he'd never forgotten her body language. And cat or no, it really hadn't changed all that much.

"Meow," Narcissa said simply, looking over her shoulder at him.

"Don't try and pretend there's nothing wrong," Draco replied, coming to sit next to his mother. He picked her up and placed her in his lap. She sighed and looked up at him.

"Meeeow," she replied mournfully, nudging her son's hand with her head.

"Oh…" Draco said. "I think there's something wrong with her…"

"You think?" Hermione asked. Draco shot her a nasty look.

"I meant physically. Don't be disrespectful towards my mother," Draco snapped. "I don't think she can change back…"

Narcissa nipped his finger and nodded slightly.

"Oh," Hermione said her eyes wide. She then got up and hurried out of the room. When she reappeared, she was holding a large book in her hands. She scanned through the index and when she finally found what she was looking for, she looked at him triumphantly.

"Mrs. Malfoy?" Hermione began cautiously. "When's the last time you were yourself…in human form?"

Narcissa looked as though she were thinking. She then jumped off of Draco's lap and came to Hermione.

"Meow," she said. Then she remember Hermione didn't understand cat language and let out a sigh.

"Two years?" Hermione asked. Narcissa growled, slightly frustrated, and moved so that her tail was in Hermione's view. She waved it in front of Hermione's face, and then began tapping the tip of it against Hermione's coffee table. She did that three times.

"Three years?" Hermione asked.

"Meow." Was her response.

Hermione fell silent, reading her large book until she found what she was looking for.

"When you try to turn back, does your head hurt?" she asked. Narcissa looked at her, without making a sound.

"No?" Hermione asked. Narcissa growled.

"Okay," Hermione said. She yawned, placing her hand in front of her mouth briefly. "When you try to change into your human form, does it feel like a pressure's being placed over your whole body?"

Narcissa let out a sharp loud meow that startled both of them. She then hopped back into her son's lap and nipped at his hand. He fell to stroking her fur, making Narcissa purr and knead his knee.

"I take that as a yes," Draco murmured.

"Right," Hermione said. "We're going to need a potion for that. And seeing as Animagus are rare, we're going to have to brew it ourselves."

"Goody," Draco said yawning. "So what's wrong with mum?"

"She's suffering from being in animagus form for too long. Some wizards such as Peter Pettigrew can handle it. He was a rat for twelve years I believe. But seeing as your mother probably didn't practice her skills all that much, it's difficult for her body to adjust to the change. Even though she can transfigure herself into a cat, she doesn't do it often enough for her body to be able to handle large amounts of time," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

Narcissa let out a sigh and looked forlornly at her son.

"It's all right, mum. We'll fix you," he said.

**A/N: Alright. There it is. And quick too!**


	17. Linda and Grace

**A/N: Thanks so much for those of you who reviewed. You guys are really great and it makes me very happy that you're enjoying the story. Here's your chapter. Love to all!**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

Narcissa watched as Hermione and Draco stumbled through the door holding bags and bags of ingredients and groceries. She sighed and looked away as her son knocked over a vase of freshly picked flowers. Honestly, he still hadn't gotten over being clumsy? It would've gotten him killed on the battlefield if Lucius hadn't given him a potion for it. Her son cursed lightly under his breath as Hermione waved her wand and put the vase back together with a small grin on her face.

They both froze, when they found Narcissa sitting on top of the table, looking at them expectantly.

"Hello mum," Draco said. He put potions ingredients and food down on the floor, and he smiled, knelt down, and kissed her on top of her little white head. She looked up at him adoringly and rubbed her nose against his cheek, in an attempt to do an Eskimo kiss. Hermione chuckled as another load of bags came whizzing through the doors.

"That was a lot of shopping," she said, wiping sweat from her brow. "And not too mention it was unusually hot today. But we got everything we needed to fix you Mrs. Malfoy," Hermione said with a bright smile. "You'll be as good as new!"

Narcissa stared at her son from gray-blue eyes.

"Have her call me Narcissa, dear," she thought. She was very talented when it came to occlumency, and she was wondering if it could be used to convey thoughts from one mind to another. Draco stared down at her, his eyes widening slightly.

"What?" he asked.

"Tell Hermione to call me Narcissa," she thought again. Draco shook his head a moment and she wished she could've laughed at the expression on his face.

"Granger," Draco began slowly, not taking his eyes off of his mother. Hermione had just come back into the kitchen with a large cauldron that looked as though it hadn't been used for years. It had a thick layer of dust on the outside of it and it was made of pewter. It looked expensive.

"Yes?" she asked, setting it in the high fireplace. She grabbed a huge measuring pitcher and filled it all the way to the top, the directions on how to make the potion, in front of her. She then went over and dumped the water into the cauldron and returned to the sink.

"My mother wishes for you to call her by her first name," he replied bashfully. "She told me it makes her feel old when you call her Mrs. Malfoy."

Hermione turned around startled.

"Really?" Hermione asked. "She said that to you?"

"Yeah," Draco replied in wonder. "I didn't know Animagus could do that…"

"You have to be rather accomplished in certain mind gifts," Hermione said with a small shrug. "But it is possible."

"Hmmm," Draco muttered. "That's interesting."

"So, Narcissa," Hermione began casually.

Narcissa looked her way, her ears perked up to show she was listening.

"Weren't you pregnant before all this?" Hermione asked, bringing down a sharp butcher knife on some Goat Root. Draco looked at his mother, remembering his unborn siblings for the first time. Narcissa merely stared out the window.

She remembered what happened…

She was lying on the cool stones, her body splayed out in an x shape. Her mind was wondering in and out of certain thoughts…memories. She wondered how Lucius and Draco were holding up together. She prayed with all of her heart that they'd both reach safety in the end of this war. But her mind was turning over certain ideas… How was she going to get out of this cell?

She heard the distant rattling of keys, and felt her daughters wrestling in her womb. She wondered what would become of Linda and Grace? She knew they wouldn't let her keep them. She couldn't care for them, she couldn't do anything.

"Malfoy," came a man's husky voice from her left. She turned her head to see who was speaking. She couldn't see his face. He was holding his wand towards her. She licked her dry lips, hoping this would be it. Perhaps he would kill her where she lay…Now that would be an easy out.

"Yes?" she asked.

"It's time," he replied. Suddenly several wizards and witches were standing around her in a tight circle. She struggled to sit up, and quite suddenly one of the female wizards were sitting behind her, supporting her head.

"Time for what?" she asked rather alarmed.

"Well we usually let this happen naturally," the man replied.

"What?" she asked. She struggled to get away when the male healer, she'd finally recognized, bent down and reached under her tattered skirt, pulling off her worn knickers.

"What are you doing?" she inquired, her voice becoming higher than it was before.

"But seeing as you are in no position to mother your unborn child, Mrs. Malfoy, I'm afraid we have to break your water to trigger you to give birth," the healer said, looking between her legs. "I need more light over here."

"They're not due for another two weeks!" Narcissa cried. "You leave my daughters be!"

This was the first time anybody had heard her speak of the gender of her baby, this was the first time they'd heard she'd be having twins.

"I'm sorry Mrs. Malfoy, but seeing as you've been refusing to eat, it's not healthy for your girls to be stuck in there. You can waste away in this cell, for all I care. But it's not right for you to be taking your unborn children with you," the healer snapped.

Tears sprung out in Narcissa's eyes. She hadn't been starving herself. There was a woman in the cell next to hers who would trade her food. They'd been feeding Narcissa very well, seeing as she was eating for two…well three. But she knew they'd slipped her veritaserum in her meal. Nobody had suspected a thing.

"I have not been starving my unborn children!" she yelled. Suddenly she felt a lot of moisture gush out of her body, making a light splashing noise on the stones below her. "You bastards!" she cried.

But the contractions had begun right at that moment. The first few weren't painful, and they were coming at random intervals. But after some time had passed, they were happening every five minutes and they were beginning to hurt. She was squeezing the female healer's hand, keeping her jaw locked as to not cry out.

"Are you ready Mrs. Malfoy?" the male healer asked. She glared at him, her face flushed and shimmering with sweat. "I'm going to need you to push, Mrs. Malfoy. Come on."

The pain was too much for her, and she did as she was told, as her first daughter Linda began to crown. She cried out in pain, and it turned into a mournful scream. Tears streamed down her face. She felt the baby passing through her birth canal and after a moment the pain ebbed…but only for a couple of minutes.

She heard her sweet daughter's cries fill her ears, as wizards hurried away with her in their arms. Next came Grace.

An hour passed, and Narcissa had delivered her placenta and was being tended to by a silent female healer. She'd torn during the delivery and had to be sewn back together.

"Where are my daughters?" Narcissa whispered. They'd brought her a cot to lie on. She let out a hiss of pain when the healer brought the needle into her tender skin again.

"They're safe," the healer said quietly.

"Yes, but where are they?" Narcissa asked, sitting up slightly.

"In our nursery," the healer mumbled.

"Can I see them?" she asked. "Their names are Linda and Grace," she replied.

The healer remained silent.

"Well?" Narcissa asked in her demanding Malfoy tone.

"I'm afraid not Mrs. Malfoy," the witch said.

"Why not?" Narcissa asked, her voice quivering. "They are _my_ daughters."

"They won't be by the end of this week," the witch said. She pulled out her wand and uttered a healing spell. All discomfort from Narcissa's nether regions had disappeared. The witch then fell to removing the stitches. They stitched it up to keep it together for the healing.

"What do you mean?" Narcissa asked. She felt a familiar knot form in her delicate throat.

"They'll be put up for adoption. In about a week, they'll be going to a wizarding family who can take care of them," the healer replied.

"That's not legal!" Narcissa cried hysterically, sitting up. "You can't do that unless I give you permission!"

"I'm sorry ma'am but times have changed to accommodate the war," the healer replied with a nasty smirk upon her thin lips. "Thank your husband for that."

At this the woman got up and shut the cell door, Narcissa running at the bars. She grasped them in her small hands and pressed her face between them.

"Come back here!" she screamed after the witch. "I want to see my daughters!"

But it was no use. She felt hot tears spill down her pale cheeks and she sat down on the cot, with her face in her hands.

"Mum?" Draco asked, bringing her back to the world. She stared up at him silently, her ears back, and she jumped off of the table and wondered away into the living room.

Hermione stared after her frowning. "I'm sorry," she said to Draco. He smiled.

"It's not your fault," Draco replied. "She's going to have to talk about it sometime.

And the two of them set off back to work to bring Narcissa back into the world of humans.

**A/N: Alright. There you are. Hope you liked it!**


	18. Serenity and Anya: The Lost Malfoy Link

**A/N: Thank you to all of my reviewers. I love you guys. Here you are. ENJOY:D**

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

It had been nearly a week since Lucius Malfoy had spotted Narcissa. Today he sat in front of a large residence, in the shadows. This would be tricky business. After much asking around and searching he'd finally found them. Linda and Grace… Well actually, their 'parents' had named them Serenity and Anya Burnside. Not bad names in his opinion, but they'd wanted something simple and feminine for their girls, him and his wife.

The parents were at work. No doubt they worked in the ministry. Like all of his other plans, this wasn't thought all the way through. He hadn't thought that the ministry would look straight in his direction if he did this. But he had to. He needed to. For Narcissa and himself.

He strolled across the street. This was a muggle residence, located in London. Thank God it was somewhere close. The house was a decent size, but nowhere near the Malfoy Manor. He cringed. Of course that meant they'd given his daughters to a mudblood and a muggle. Or a pureblood and a muggle. Who knew?

Lucius adjusted his bra before he rang the doorbell. His wand was in hand when a young muggle girl came to the door.

"May I help you?" she asked rudely. A yes, snooty rich muggle. No wand. Not an ounce of magical blood in her.

Lucius sneered, a long strand of dark hair falling into his cool blue eyes. He smirked at her as he performed a nice bit of wandless magic. He pointed his wand at her with a small flick and she fell to the ground unconscious. He stepped over her body, in his high heels, and dragged her magically in with him before the door snapped shut.

"Samantha?" came a high-pitched voice. It sounded like music to his ears. A small blonde girl came into the room. She looked to be about six years old or so. It was definitely Narcissa's daughter. Definitely his. Her eyes widened as she took in the strange woman's appearance and Lucius took a slow step forward.

"Hello," he said kindly, his eyes bright and friendly. "What's your name?"

"Daddy said never to speak to strangers," the little girl said, shying away from Lucius. He felt anger flare up inside of him as his second daughter came into view.

"Daddy told you that did he?" Lucius asked, with a small derisive laugh. "Well it's too late to listen to daddy now isn't it?"

The little girls stared up at him through his own gray eyes. Only theirs were innocent and pure.

"Well did your daddy ever tell you he's not your real father?" Lucius asked. The two little girl's eyes widened. There was a family portrait on the wall next to him. This wizard, he'd never met before. He had dark hair and brown eyes, and his wife brown hair and green eyes. There was no possible way these two little girls could belong to them. They were fair skinned and much more angelic then their parents.

"He is too our real daddy!" the twin on the left said defensively.

"Nope," Lucius replied with a kind smile, as he kneeled in front of his daughters. "And you want to know how I know that?"

The little girls nodded.

"Because I know where your real daddy and mummy are," Lucius whispered. "And they look like you too. Haven't you ever wondered why you don't look like your parents?"

He saw a light bulb go on in both of the little girls' head at once, as they exchanged a knowing look, and it became clear to him that they had the twin bond.

"Would you like me to take you to your real daddy?" Lucius asked. The little girls were clasping each other's hands. They both took a hesitant step towards him and he held out his arms and they both allowed him to grasp them. It was then that he picked them both up and hurried out the front door, where he quickly Apparated away and to a dark damp place.

"Bronks!" he hissed into the darkness. "Are you here?"

"Yes, Master Malfoy," came a squeaky voice as torches suddenly erupted around him. A small house elf appeared next to the twin girls.

"Tell me. How many Aurors have been here?" Lucius asked.

"None Master Malfoy," the house elf whispered. "I is keeping the spell up for you. The one that makes Master's house look burned down."

"Good," Lucius said coldly. "Keep it that way."

"They is not coming by here, Master. They wouldn't be expecting you to come back to Master's house," Bronks replied. And then his large yellow eyes fell on the twins and he let out a sigh.

"Is this Master's daughters sir?" he asked, staring at the twins with true love in his eyes.

"Yes," Lucius replied. The young girls were staring up at him in awe. They couldn't absorb how he'd turned from a woman into a man in the blink of an eye.

"And how many of my comrades?" Lucius asked.

"Several Master," Bronks said. "I is taking care of them all the time."

"Good," Lucius said quite pleased. "Very good."

Bronks bowed low and kissed Lucius' ring. Lucius allowed this as a reward for Bronks' loyalty.

"Next time, you are to tell them to meet me here in a week," Lucius replied. "In one week."

"Oh, that will work out nicely Master," Bronks said beaming. "They is coming all the time."

"Good," Lucius said. "And you are to keep Serenity and Anya out of sight. Do you understand? Those men may be my comrades, but you are not to breath a word to any of them about what I have hidden here."

"Yes Master," Bronks said. "I is guarding the young ones with my very own life!"

"As will the rest of your kind whilst you are under my roof," Lucius said.

"Yes sir," Bronks replied. "All of is will make sure they is safe."

Lucius nodded.

"Before I go, I'll put up a ward to alarm you if any fellow Death Eaters come. If that is to happen, you are to hide the girls in your quarters. Keep them out of sight," Lucius said sternly.

"Yes Master," Bronks whispered.

Lucius nodded and swiftly turned to his little girls.

"I am your father, young ones," he replied. He then kneeled down and held his arms out. They stared at him in wonder before they allowed themselves to be hugged. He knew they were Malfoys at heart and it wasn't too late for them to forget their fake parents. It wasn't too late for him to get his family back together under one roof.

He breathed in their sweet scent.

"Have them bunk in Draco's room for now," Lucius said. "And when I return, I will fix them up their own room."

"Yes sir," Bronks whispered.

"I will be back to see you soon my sweets," Lucius said. "Do not fear me."

They stared at him, their tiny mouths identically pouty.

"Where is our mother?" Serenity asked.

"She is away right now. But have no worries. I will bring her to see you," Lucius replied, stroking Serenity's soft platinum hair.

"Who is Draco?" Anya asked curiously.

"He is your older brother," Lucius said. "And hopefully he'll be back soon as well."

"Where have they gone?" Serenity asked.

"On holiday," Lucius replied before he stood up. "Well, I'm off. Take good care of them."

But he was nearly knocked over by his daughters as they grasped him around both of his legs.

"Don't leave!" Serenity cried from his left.

"Don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow," Lucius replied. And after that was said, he left to set up wards and plan a Death Eater reunion.

**A/N: You no what to do, review! Please. **


	19. Draco's War Paths

**A/N: I know it's been awhile but I needed a break. I've only got one thing to say. IF YOU DON'T LIKE WHERE THIS STORY IS GOING DON'T READ IT! Other than that, thank you for the reviews. And I will try and make my chapters longer. Love you all. **

**A Mudblood's Slave?**

"Shit!"

Narcissa heard her son cry out in the kitchen of the small cottage. Hermione said something that sounded slightly muffled and then the faucet went on and Draco came into the cozy living room holding a wet cloth to his wrist.

"What happened?" Narcissa thought. Draco looked up and grumbled something.

"What?" she asked.

"One of the ingredients to _your_ potion bit me," Draco murmured. Just then Hermione came out holding a box that was full of large insect looking creatures. There was a high-pitched shrieking noise coming through the lid as she placed the lock firmly in its place.

"I told you Draco. They're vicious!" Hermione scolded kneeling in front of him. "Now let me see your wound."

He did as she commanded and looked up at the ceiling rolling his eyes.

"Honestly. You men with your egos. It always gets you into trouble," she grumbled. Draco rolled his eyes once more until she conjured up a cotton swab and a bottle of rubbing alcohol.

"Ah!" he hissed, pulling his wrist out of her grasp. "What the fu-"

Narcissa let out a sharp meow that put a stop to the evil word that was about to escape her son's lips.

"Sorry mother," he murmured sheepishly, his cheeks turning pink slightly. Narcissa stared at him coolly, with her ears back.

"No it won't happen again," he recited as though he'd said that simple sentence several times throughout his life. She seemed pleased with him and hopped off of the coffee table and went to sit on the windowsill.

"So how long until the potion will be ready?" Narcissa thought returning her attention to the young adults as Hermione wrapped Draco's wrist in a bandage.

"Pretty soon, Narcissa," Hermione replied. "It's got a few more days to simmer and then we have to add the winged scorpions. You're lucky they aren't poisonous Draco," Hermione added, her deep brown eyes meeting Draco's. "Or else we'd have a problem on our hands."

Hermione then returned to the kitchen and began bustling around to get some lunch together.

Narcissa came and hopped into Draco's lap. She then curled up in a soft white ball and looked up at him with her gray eyes.

"You're father was here the other night," she thought to him. She made sure that Draco alone could hear what she was thinking. She didn't want Hermione to tune in on this conversation.

"When?" Draco asked.

"The night he fooled Miss Granger into thinking he was somebody else," Narcissa thought. She sighed. "I want you to do something for me dear," she began.

"What is that?" Draco asked.

"I want you to stick to your guns. Don't let Lucius manipulate you into thinking his way is the right way," she rubbed her soft little face into the palm of his hand and he scratched behind her ears. His mother began to purr and she rolled onto her back with her eyes shut. Draco smiled down at her.

"I realized that a short while ago," Draco replied. "When I was hiding in that shit hole, all I could think about is how badly I'd screwed up. Those were my schoolmates for God sakes, mother! I cut them down before they even had a chance to begin life. And here I am sitting in a nice warm living room on a cushiony chair with one of my favorite people in my lap and those people are gone forever."

"There's nothing you can do to fix that," Narcissa thought, staring up at him, her four paws sticking up in the air. "But you can avenge them by going against your father."

Draco looked startled by this remark.

"What?" he asked.

"You heard me well and fine," Narcissa replied.

Again that inner battle began.

He remembered Lucius sitting across from him in that fancy restroom while Hermione was in the ladies room. His father staring at him expectantly through those pale dead eyes.

His thoughts at that moment had been:

"There has to be a better way."

He'd told his father to give it up. He'd told him to live it up for the remaining years of his life. Lucius Malfoy was growing in age. And although wizards tended to live longer than muggles, seeing as they had a cure for almost every single ailment there was…except for the common cold, mostly because wizards hardly ever got colds; they tended to be healthier. Not only that but they didn't have as many bad habits. Their smoking tobacco was wizard's tobacco, grown without any stimulants or chemicals. And wizards also had a way of reversing damage done to the lungs by smoking.

So basically, Lucius Malfoy had a good chance of living for a long time. Why not make the best of it?

But his father was a stubborn man. And he'd been angered when the Death Eaters hadn't come out on top. Draco knew it was their own fault. The reason their end came about so quickly was because old grudges were settled out on the battlefield… And there were a _lot_ of old grudges. You had to step on somebody to get where you were going and at that point everyone was straining to get to the top of the food chain, or Voldemort's list.

And the remaining Death Eaters that had lived through the war and were now hiding out some place or another, hated one each other with the same passion as they had five years back when the war had taken place. Why did Lucius want to get old enemies back in the same room together?

Even though they would probably come, because even though they didn't see eye-to-eye or anywhere close, they all believed in the same thing:

A world free of muggle born filth. A world with no existing equality.

They wanted a world full of dark days and even darker nights. A world where nobody was safe.

And what kind of a place would that be for Draco's children? If he chose to have any at all he'd want their environment to be suitable. Or Malfoy friendly.

"What's gotten into you mother?" Draco asked staring down at her. She rolled over onto her side and pierced him with her gaze.

"Let's just say that I had more than enough time to think things through while I was stuck in that prison cell," she replied. "You think that I'm just going to run back to your father after all that he's caused? I don't know where my daughters are because of him. I don't know where your little sisters are! Do you know what that does to me every day?"

Draco was now more than a little confused by this statement.

"I thought the twins died," he murmured.

"No, Dragon," she whispered, her voice feeling his mind. "The twins were taken from me by force. I didn't have a choice. And now they're out there, somewhere in this damned world with phony parents," she snapped. "I have more than enough anger to rock your father's world."

"And that's it?" Draco asked.

"No. Lucius made me do more than a fair share of his dirty work," Narcissa said. Her voice remained steady in his mind, but her pitch had risen ever so slightly. "He was the man and I his wife. But sometimes men tend to take advantage of what us women give them in marriage. Oh yes, Draco, I gave up years of my life to make your father's transitions go smoothly. But I think we both know that we'd rather stay on his good side instead of the bad."

"Mother what are you talking about?" Draco asked. He was starting to feel quite foolish with all of these questions that were pretty much the same one over and over again. But this was the first time that Narcissa Malfoy wasn't making sense to him, and when it finally dawned on him everything clicked into place. "Mum, what aren't you telling me?" Draco inquired staring her down with his gray eyes.

Narcissa turned and hopped gracefully off his lap.

"I will stand by you in whatever decision you make," she drawled, as she made her way out to the kitchen. "But please, Draco, make sure it is the right one. If you know in your heart that you want to join your father in this dead end fight, then so be it. I'll go with you. But if you choose to turn around and really make something of yourself in this, then I'll be ecstatic. Just know where I stand."

It was then that Narcissa entered the kitchen and left through the small kitty door that had been installed. Draco rested his chin on his palm, his elbow propped on his knee. He turned over everything in his mind and realized that Narcissa hadn't exactly answered his questions about Lucius. And his mind was still reeling with the information he had been given, even if it was only a bit.

"Lunch is ready," Hermione said with a large smile, holding a tray of sandwiches.

"Great," Draco said with a sigh. "I'm starving."

Hermione gave him a puzzled look before he walked past her in the kitchen.

What was he going to do?

"Draco?" Hermione asked thoughtfully. He turned around with his eyebrows raised.

"Hmmm?" he asked.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said with an artificial smile. He reached over and touched her shoulder. She looked slightly surprised at this. "I'm fine."

He saw a slight tinge come to her cheeks as she brushed a thick strand of hair out of her face.

"How about some lunch then?" she asked sitting down at the small round table.

"Sure," Draco replied following suit. But when he finally got around to eating, he found he didn't feel very hungry. Little did he know, somewhere out in England, his father was gathering the Death Eaters together. And it was impossible to know how much time he really had to make his decision.

**A/N: Alright I know. Still short. Sorry but this is what ya'll get. Hope you like it. And also SORRY. It's been awhile. A looooooooooong while. But I did need a break from all this writing. Hope you enjoy it. Leave me a review.**


	20. The Attack on Narcissa Malfoy

**A/N: HI!!! It's been forever since I've updated. I know. And I'm happy to say that I now have a new chapter for you all. I really hope that I've made a good come back. However my computer is out. I will update as soon as possible still. Please leave me a review and tell me what you think. Thanks to all for your reviews. I'm hoping I don't disappoint you. Love to all!**

**Disclaimer: All characters and settings used in this story belong to J.K. Rowling. Some settings however are mine.**

**A Mudblood's Slave**

It had been two weeks since Draco and Narcissa Malfoy had had that important conversation about his father, and Draco found he was still very confused about it all. He had never had to make a decision this difficult before. Sure, he'd made some pretty horrendous decisions in his short lifetime but none of them had to do with betraying his blood. He sat at the table ripping wings off of winged scorpions as Hermione stirred his mother's potion. Something had gone wrong in their first attempt and the whole potion had burst into flame and dissolved before their very eyes. Neither Draco, nor Hermione could figure out what they'd done.

"I'm hoping it works this time," Hermione sighed. "Are you done with those?" she asked referring to the winged scorpions, which were now dead and stacked neatly on a wooden cutting board. Their wings, pinchers, legs, tails, and stingers were in a separate pile.

"I think so," Draco muttered thoughtfully.

"Throw the bodies into the potion… This is where we went wrong last time. I think it's because we put the whole scorpion into the cauldron. The directions say only to put the body." Hermione brushed a piece of goat root off of her robes and put her butcher knife down.

"Where did it say that?" Draco asked, walking over to the book and examining the directions.

"It's a note at the bottom of the page. I think we both missed it," Hermione replied. She suddenly appeared next to him and plucked the dead scorpion that he'd been holding, out of his hand. She quickly went and collected the others and dropped them carefully into the cauldron, cringing as she stirred.

"Has it burst into flames yet?" Draco asked, as he came and sat back down at the small round table. The afternoon sun shone in on the small kitchen and Draco looked around with an affection that he'd never felt for any other place that he'd been in his whole life.

"Nope," Hermione said turning and smiling triumphantly at him. "I think we got it this time."

"We should tell mum," Draco said happily standing up, as the color of the potion went from dark red to fiery orange. "Where is she?"

"I don't know," Hermione mused, putting her hands on her hips. "I actually haven't seen her since this morning."

"She's probably just outside or something," Draco said, although his brow was furrowed.

"What's the matter?" Hermione asked. "You look worried."

"No," Draco replied absently. "I was just thinking about something." She watched as he stood and exited the kitchen to go outside.

Draco walked slowly around the huge fix-me-up home that Hermione and he had been working on steadily. It was beginning to look like a real home. Hermione had agreed that since it would be much too hard to paint the house seeing as there were three stories, that they would do that part with magic. He'd also talked her into laying down the tile, wood, or carpet, through out the mansion with magic as well. She'd agreed to that after she'd glued her hands to the floor.

"Mum?" Draco called. "Where are you?"

It was silent for a moment and then he heard a high pitched meow come from somewhere in the thick trees that surrounded the residency.

"Mum?" he asked again, this time alarmed. It was the way the meow had sounded. It sounded desperate, almost at the brink of panic. He ran towards the trees calling her over and over again. By the time he found her he practically tripped over her. He found her little body lying amongst the leaves; her snowy white fur now matted with blood.

"Oh my GOD!" Draco shrieked. "MUM!"

Inside the small cottage, Hermione's head shot up at the sound of Draco' s voice. She could hear him yelling frantically. She stood up, her book falling to the floor and ran outside. She hurried towards his yell, only to come face to face with a huge gray wolf. It hunched its back, the fur bristling, as it growled viciously at her. Its sharp teeth were covered in blood, and its chomps were littered with snowy white fur.

Draco suddenly came up behind the wolf, holding a tiny bundle in his arms. Whatever he had, it was wrapped in his over robes. He stood in a T-shirt and Hermione suddenly had a very good idea about what was going on.

"Granger!" he said startled. At the sound of Draco's voice, the wolf turned and looked at him. It brought its head down low to the floor as though it was about ready to pounce. Hermione quickly grasped her wand and bellowed a hex. The wolf froze in its tracks and fell on its side.

Draco stared down at it shocked.

"The potion's ready," Hermione said. Draco didn't say anything. He simply stared at Hermione, his eyes wide and uncomprehending. She walked towards him and cautiously reached out, grasping the hem of Draco's over robe. She then pulled it back to reveal Narcissa's small furry head, the fur matted with red. She drew her hand back quickly as though something had burned her.

"Oh my God!" she said. "Draco we have to get her inside!"

When Draco didn't move, she quickly reached out and grabbed Narcissa's small limp form. She could feel wet spots on the robes where the small cat's blood had seeped through.

"Draco!" Hermione called as she ran towards the cottage. "Come _on_!"

Draco blinked and when he realized his arms were empty, he hurried after Hermione, leaving the wolf where it lay. He would deal with it after he'd tended to his mother.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hermione quickly laid Narcissa in the bathtub and unwrapped her carefully.

"Narcissa?" Hermione asked. The small cat's ear twitched ever so slightly in Hermione's direction. She let out a sigh of relief, seeing as she'd feared the worst for Narcissa Malfoy. Draco came into the bathroom shortly after them, holding a cup of the potion.

"Are you sure it's ready?" Draco asked, setting it down on the rim of the bathtub. Hermione's eyes were closed and she held her hand up for silence as she ran the tip of her wand up and down Narcissa's side. Draco watched as the deep gash in the back of his mother's neck disappeared. He was afraid she'd already lost too much blood.

"It's ready," Hermione said after a few minutes. "Putting in the stingers cuts back on the time it takes for the scorpions to simmer." She looked down at Narcissa, who was breathing deeply, her eyes closed. She reached down and ran her fingertips over Draco's mother's tiny head. Draco looked down at the fiery orange potion, which had flecks of red and yellow. It had the consistency of melted crayon wax but if it worked, then it would've been worth everything.

"Do you think she's going to be alright?" Draco asked, looking down at his mother's small form concerned.

"I hope," Hermione said honestly. "We'll just have to wait and see. She looks like she took a beating.

Draco, suddenly filled with a sharp rage stood, his jaw set, a determined expression seeping into his now cold gray eyes.

"I'll be back in a little while," he mumbled. "Watch over my mum."

On Draco's way out of the cottage, he grabbed his sledgehammer and walked into the yard, with full intentions of killing the beast that had done this to his mother.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Night before the Attack on Narcissa Malfoy 

Lucius Malfoy stood in the corner of his dining room, with a glass of Fire Whiskey in his hand. He swirled it casually as he watched his old comrades interact. They talked of the old days and how things had been so grand back then. It was as though they'd blinded themselves intentionally as to their true circumstances. It seemed they'd totally forgotten what sort of position their incompetent leader, Voldemort had left them in. He shook his head with a bitter smirk on his face, just as he was approached by somebody he hadn't seen in a very long time.

"Lucius Malfoy," came that silky smooth voice. "How odd it is to see you back in your home after all this time…"

Lucius chuckled and took a sip of his whiskey. "Delaney Dempsey," Lucius drawled, bringing his shoulders back and lifting his chin ever so slightly. "Pleasant seeing _you_ here… of all people."

Mr. Dempsey held out his left hand to Lucius who stared down at it with slight distaste.

"Oh come now Malfoy," Dempsey said with a soft smile. "Sure we've got water under the bridge but why carry it with you this long? I'm here to make a proposal that I'm very confident you will not be able to refuse."

Lucius took in his long time adversary, comrade, and friend with the same malice he'd had since the two had met. Delaney Dempsey was about six foot, one. And Lucius was proud to know that his own son was now taller than Dempsey was. He didn't know why he was… He just was. Seeing as Lucius himself was only six feet tall.

Delaney had fine black hair that was as straight as the edge of a ruler. It was unruly and fell into his lively brown eyes constantly. His skin was as pale as Lucius' and he had a straight hawk like nose. His jaw line was prominent, as was his chin. His lips were full and smooth. He wore a black trench coat that he'd had for five years or better now, and a pair of combat boots. His shirt was plain and black.

Lucius reached out and took his hand slowly, never breaking his eye contact. Delaney's hand was icy cold in his, even though he'd just been wearing leather gloves, which he'd removed to shake Lucius' hand.

"What have you got for me?" Lucius asked, withdrawing his hand and placing it in his pocket. He took another sip out of his cup as a house elf came up and offered Delaney a refreshment. Delaney waved his hand absently at the house elf, who departed quickly.

"I've heard tonight that your wife is still alive," Delaney said casually examining his nails. Lucius felt his blood go cold.

"And where did you hear that?" Lucius asked trying to keep cool.

"Well," Delaney said. "The others know. I've heard that you have some interest in getting your son and wife back under Malfoy Manor's roof."

"Because this is where they belong," Lucius said simply. "That would only be natural…"

"Yes of course," Delaney replied.

"So what's this proposal you speak of?" Lucius asked. The two were standing in close proximity to each other as they conversed. Lucius swirled his drink inattentively as he listened to Delaney. The other Death Eaters were beginning to notice the two. It wasn't normal for Dempsey and Malfoy to be in the same room together with out trying to rip out each other's Adam's apple. Lucius seemed intrigued with what Delaney was whispering to him. As a matter of fact, he was smirking widely…

"Yes but why would you want to do this for me?" Lucius asked, his brow furrowing momentarily. Delaney chuckled.

"Let's just call it a favor," he replied. "And one day… Who knows? I might ask you to return it."

"I don't know if I trust you with something as important as this," Lucius muttered. He quickly downed the rest of his drink and waved a house elf over. Bronks hurried to his master's side and replaced the fire whiskey quickly.

"Lucius, Lucius, Lucius," Delaney sighed. "Have you really got a choice?"

"There's always more than one option," Lucius said. "I've got to think this through."

"If you say she's at the mudblood's home up on the hill, then your only option is clear," Delaney said with a shark tooth grin. He pulled up his left sleeve to reveal his bare wrist. Dempsey had been a servant of Lord Voldemort in the Dark Lord's time, but he'd never been marked due to his position as a spy. Just as Severus Snape, except Snape had been marked simply because Voldemort had given Severus the time of day. Dempsey was never given that kind of hospitality. But his loyalty had always been questionable and because of that the Dark Lord never trusted him. Fortunately for Dempsey, he'd never been caught doing anything that could have gotten him killed.

"No mark, no Death Eater," Delaney licked his lips. "I can get on the premises and bring her back to you. Draco however… He's going to be a little harder to get my hands on."

"Not just a little harder," Lucius said. "Him and the Granger mudblood have seemed to grow close in the time he's stayed with her. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she's rubbed off on him. He's beginning to remind me of Potter in his way of thinking. Just the other day he told me I should retire and live the rest of my life clean and free. He thinks that's the way all of the Death Eaters that haven't been captured should be living."

"Riiiight," Delaney murmured his hand on his chin. "It sounds like somebody's gotten under his skin. They've gone and confused him… Would you like me to get rid of this woman as well?"

Lucius looked surprised at this.

"I would kill her myself just as soon as I'd look at her," he replied. "She's meddling. Draco's always been weak. He can't think for himself and-"

"He needs somebody to set him right again?" Delaney asked.

"Yes I suppose that's it," Lucius nodded and sighed. "It's disappointing."

"Yes well, your son has always been a disappointment to you," Delaney muttered.

"Not always," Lucius began. "When he fought alongside me, it was like we bonded in a way that we'd never bonded in before… I was his father for once, not just his teacher and master. We were together… Really together. You know?"

"I can't say that I do, Malfoy," Delaney replied. "I don't have a son. Or any children for that matter."

"You've never even had a woman," Lucius replied smartly. Delaney laughed, letting his head fall back.

"You know that's not true, Lucius," he said with a wide smile. "I've had plenty of women."

"Not any that you've seen steadily," Lucius said, his index finger sticking out as if to enunciate his point.

"Yes, but I did see them," Delaney said winking.

"Naked," Lucius added, brushing a strand of blonde hair out of his gray eyes.

"That's right," Delaney said making a crude jester with his hips.

The two laughed.

"So do you accept my proposal?" he asked Lucius after a moment.

"I don't know," Lucius said finally. "I don't understand your motives."

"Let's call it a jester of peace," Delaney said, raising his eyebrows at Lucius. "Alright? That's all. We've got to start working together if we want our plan to pull through… ALL of us," he replied, turning to face the room with his arms out. The drunken Death Eaters cheered, raising their glasses to the two men in the corner. Delaney turned back to face Malfoy. "Can you accept that as an explanation?"

Lucius studied him for a long time then he nodded.

"Alright. I'll let you do it," he said. "Just don't hurt her."

"And the mudblood?" Delaney asked.

"If the mudblood gets in the way," Lucius said with such malevolence that it startled him for a moment, "You may kill her. If it comes to that, make sure there's nothing left."

Delaney nodded and turned to leave.

"All I needed to know," he said before motioning at a house elf to bring him a drink. He then turned, tapped the rim of his glass against Lucius Malfoy's and turned to mingle with his old 'friends.'

Lucius couldn't shake an awful anxiety that something wasn't quite right after that little conversation. But he let it roll off of his back. He was one step closer to his goals. He then strutted out of the dining room and climbed the stairs to his son's bedroom. He could hear Bronks' wife reading to the girls.

"Misty?" one of the girls said. He believed it was Anya… Although he didn't really like that name for her. Sure they weren't awful names but they weren't _their_ names.

"Yes dear?" he heard the ancient houses elf say.

"Why hasn't our father come to say goodnight?" she asked. Lucius stood outside of the door and out of sight for a moment.

"Your father is being busy with his guests," Misty replied. "He should be coming any time soon Grace."

Lucius smiled at the use of that name.

"Is Grace not happy with Grace's new home?" Misty asked. Lucius frowned for a moment.

"It's not that," the little girl whispered. "Ever since I can remember, I never belonged. Serenity got along with our other daddy a lot more than I did. But I was always having these dreams where I was getting picked up by a man with no face and he was taking me away."

By the sounds of it, the other twin was asleep.

"I always thought that my real family was somewhere far away and that I'd done something bad. I thought they didn't want me anymore so they gave me away to somebody else."

"Oh no young Miss Grace!" Misty said. "Your mummy and daddy is very nice people. They is never giving you away on purpose! They just was not able to take care of you due to the war. Your daddy, Master Malfoy was always being busy with being a hero. But he is never stopping loving you!"

Lucius nodded in approval.

"Why do you call me Grace, Misty?" his daughter asked suddenly. Misty laughed softly and he chanced glancing through the doorway. He found the small house elf stroking his daughter's hair. He figured there may have been at least one or two house elves at their former home. Usually children who'd never seen one before were deathly afraid of them for a while.

"Because Grace is what Master Malfoy and his wife is calling you before you was stolen from them," Misty said. "Your mummy was giving birth to you second, after your sister. Her name was always going to be Linda, ever since the Malfoys be knowing you were on the way."

Lucius finally showed himself.

"Hello," he said quietly. Misty jumped slightly and turned. She got up slowly and bowed before her master, her tattered tea cloth was draped around her bony shoulders loosely.

"Master Malfoy," she said politely. "I is telling Grace why I is not calling her the other name."

"That's fine Misty," Lucius replied. "You may go and take a break. Be back in twenty minutes."

"I is thanking you sir," Misty replied as she hobbled out of the room. Lucius took the small wooden chair next to Draco's old four poster bed. He didn't know it, but Draco had had many a girl in this bed with him. In the most intimate of ways. If he had known, he would've made the girls stay elsewhere.

"Hello Grace," he whispered as to not wake Linda. Grace smiled at him settling into her pillows. Her eyes shone with a curiosity that reminded Lucius much of the twins' mother.

"Hello," she said politely. Her formality worried him a little.

"Aren't you tired?" he asked. She shook her head.

"I was waiting for you to come in and say good night," she whispered back to him. "But I never get tired this early at night. Serenity always falls asleep early and leaves me by myself most nights."

"Her name is Linda," Lucius whispered with a smile. "Serenity is the name your fake parents gave her. Grace is what your mother and I named you."

Grace smiled, her eyelids drooping ever so slightly. Lucius reached out and placed his hand across the small of her back, his whole hand covering her small waist. This was a trick that had worked on Draco when he was only a little boy. He began to rub her back very gently and almost immediately, Grace had fallen asleep, her breathing deep and gentle. He smiled and leaned forward, his cold lips kissing her small forehead. She rubbed her cheek against the silky emerald green sheets and let out a sigh. Lucius stood quietly and walked out of the room. He had business to attend to.

Delaney Dempsey was an Animagus. The animal he took shape as was a huge gray wolf. Lucius would send him to do his work tomorrow. If he succeeded, then Lucius could be reunited with his wife as soon as tomorrow evening.

Lucius thought he might have a good idea as to why Delaney was so willing to help him. But if he turned out to be right, Lucius would deal with Delaney later on. In the past, he'd had his wife do many favors for his fellow Death Eaters to make sure certain deals came through and the transition went smoothly. His wife hadn't been very much inclined to do these certain _favors_ at first but she had eventually seen the importance in keeping Lucius' connections loyal. He knew she'd never liked having to serve so many men, but she'd done it because she loved him. Lucius reentered the Dining hall and was greeted with cheers from his fellow Death Eaters.

For the meantime, he needed Delaney. So he would keep quiet. After all, _if_ his suspicions were correct, it was his own fault. He wasn't worried though. It wouldn't take much to put Dempsey back in to line.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Draco stormed to where the wolf had been before he'd gone into the cottage, but when he reached the area on the floor, the animal was no longer there. Draco cursed under his breath and went around the mansion to the front gate where he proceeded to check under the porch and in the trees. The creature was no where to be found.

"Fucking lucky," he growled, holding his sledgehammer at his side.

"Malfoy!" someone yelled rudely at him. He looked up to find Potter and Weasley standing at the front gate both glaring at him.

"What?" he asked defensively. He saw the two men study him, both sets of their eyes falling on the sledgehammer last. They then returned their gazes to his face.

"Let us in," Ron snapped. "We've been standing here nearly three minutes while you crawled around on the floor by the porch. One would think you're looking for drugs or something under there."

"Yes, Weasel," Draco jeered. "Because I hide all sorts of drugs under this here porch. I came to get my fix and then go jump in bed with Granger."

Ron turned a bright shade of red at this last comment and just as he was about to retaliate, Harry reached up casually and put his hand over Ron's mouth.

"Smart move, Potter," Draco said with a nod. "If you let him keep talking, you two would be stuck out there until kingdom come."

"Can you just open the gate Malfoy?" Potter snapped. Clearly both of his childhood adversaries, now fully grown mature adult enemies, were in really foul moods this afternoon.

"I don't know Potter," Draco said, strutting over to the gate. "What's in it for me?"

"I won't shove my foot up your arse!" Ron bellowed before Harry covered his mouth again. Draco raised his eyebrows at Ronald.

"Do you remember the conversation we had about your homosexual tendencies Weasel?" Draco asked with an evil grin. Ron began to wrestle with Harry once more to get free.

"I think they're starting to show again. You'd like to shove _something_ up my arse wouldn't you?" Draco finished, chuckling. Ron finally wrenched Harry's hand away from his mouth.

"Just open the bloody gate Malfoy!" he shrieked at him. Draco smiled.

"No… I don't think I will," he replied turning to walk away.

"We need to talk to you about your father," Harry blurted out finally, stopping Draco in his tracks. He turned slowly.

"What _about_ my father Potter?" Draco asked.

"If you let us in, we can tell you," Harry replied. Draco took a few hesitant steps towards the gate, before he stopped and shook his head.

"I can't just let _any_ one in Potty," Draco drawled. "I have to go confer with my mistress."

"We're her best friends!" Ron yelled at the blonde. "I'm sure she'll be fine with us visiting."

"Maybe she doesn't like you any more Weasley," Draco replied, setting the head of his sledgehammer down, leaning on the handle. "You really don't rub her the right way."

"Like you'd know," Weasley said with a derisive laugh.

"I do know," Draco said with an evil sneer. "She talks to me."

"She talks to us too, Malfoy," Harry said.

"Probably," Draco said with a shrug. "But it's likely that you haven't even heard of the things she's told me."

The two men looked worried.

"I'm sure she won't mind," Harry said.

"One can never be too sure Potty," Draco replied mockingly. "Hold tight. I'll be back before the sun sets."

"I'll kill him," Ron growled as Harry sat down on a rock that sat beside the heavy gates.

"He won't leave us here all afternoon," Harry said, although he sounded very uncertain.

**A/N: Hope you liked this new chapter. I have more coming. Review. Tell me what you think and all that good stuff.**


End file.
